Half Blessing, Half Curse
by TD Master
Summary: Ranma 12 BtVS crossover, Xander is sold to the Chinese mob by his father in between season 1 and 2 of Buffy.
1. part 1

Title:

1/2 Blessing, 1/2 Curse

Author:

3D Master

Feedback:

3d.masterchello.nl

Website:

http:members.chello.nl/jg.temolder1/

Rating:

R

Keywords:

X-Over Ranma ½ / Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Action, Humor, Drama, AU.

Summary:

In between Buffy S1/S2 Xander's father sells him to the Chinese mob, then he returns with a blessing and a curse.

Disclaimer:

Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its characters do not belong to me, but Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy Productions. Ranma ½ belongs to Rumiko Takahashi

1/2 Blessing, 1/2 Curse

by 3D Master (3d.masterchello.nl)

website: http:members.chello.nl/jg.temolder1/

Willow Rosenberg was bored, and depressed as she walked along the street in Sunnydale - at night. Why she had decided to walk around, was completely forgotten. She was trying to dredge up the reason, but couldn't. It was one monumentally stupid decision in hindsight. Her brain must have fried during the summer, that had to be it. It was the most hellish two months she could remember all her life. One of two of her best friends since childhood had been killed several months before, although she got a new, and her first real female friend - one Buffy Summers, Vampire Slayer - in return, it still pained her. That very same female friend had left with her father for the summer only a few days after its start. Then, another few days after that, her other best friend, _/the/_ best friend - one Alexander 'Xander' Lavelle Harris - had disappeared. The next week or so had been an emotional roller coaster ride from boredom, concern, grief, to terror and back again. Finding his mutilated body had woken her up out of nightmares, imagining a vampire version of her friend coming after her had kept her from falling asleep. Then just over a week after his disappearance a letter came from him, in which he explained he was fine. _/That/_ had been the happiest event in all her life, the relief had almost been overwhelming. After her first happy had died down, she'd been afraid her parents were going to send her to a mental institution seeing the looks they gave her, but luckily they had just continued ignoring her. The relief had died down quickly though, into boredom, desperately waiting for the next letter Xander sent . . . and why in hell didn't Buffy send any letters? One postcard was all she got from her. Even practicing her hacking skills couldn't keep her sated, she was desperately counting the days till school would start again and her friends returned, which incidentally would be tomorrow. So now she was walking around, wishing tomorrow was now.

Yep, it was official, she mused. Willow Rosenberg really had lost her mind. There was a sudden growl, and the petite redhead twisted around in its direction, seeing the vamped out face of a vampire that considered her lunch, or breakfast . . . or perhaps diner. Stop analyzing, start screaming! Willow screamed, shrieked was more like it. Terror went through her entire body, and she backed up . . . exactly two steps when she bumped against a low wall. The vampire advanced, and Willow stopped her screaming long enough to pull out a wooden stake, and say, "I know how to kill you."

The vamp laughed. He bared his razor sharp teeth and fangs and said, "And I know how to kill you."

"EEP!" Willow screamed out and lunged. The vamp easily deflected the lunge, and disarmed Willow.

"Oof!" the vampire called out, as a blonde whirlwind flew past a still terrified, but now surprised Willow, and knocked the vamp on his back. A moment later a stake moved down, and with a 'poof' the vampire turned to dust.

Buffy Summers turned around, slightly out of breath - apparently she had to hurry to get to Willow on time, and said with exasperation, "Willow! How can you be out and alone at night!? You know what's lurking in Sunnydale, and why didn't you bring a cross!?"

A very relieved Willow slowly got her breathing back under control. She shook her head and said, "Buffy, thank god! We're Jewish remember, mom and dad won't let them in the house, and I couldn't sneak one past them tonight."

"Couldn't you have gone out with Xander?" Buffy asked concerned.

Willow shook her head, and answered, "Xander isn't here, he's . . . I better show you the letters." Buffy frowned, as Willow smiled and pointed in the direction to her house. Willow started to walk, and then paused. So did Buffy and she looked confused at the hesitating Willow. Suddenly the redhead flung herself at her blond, super hero friend, and hugged her tightly, "I'm so glad you're back, Buffy. I was bored to death, almost literally."

"I'm glad I'm back too, Willow" Buffy said, smiling and fiercely returning the hug.

"Buffy," Willow croaked out, "Slayer strength!"

Buffy let go embarrassedly, and said, "Sorry."

-----

The two hurried along to Willow's house, making Buffy concerned over what these 'letters' entailed. On their way they came past one of Sunnydale's many cemeteries, Buffy's superior vision and hearing picked up something. She halted Willow and turned to her right, looking into the cemetery. There a raven-haired girl walked, wearing a tight mini-skirt, and a revealing top, a purse slung over her right shoulder. Buffy, and even Willow, could clearly see three vampires sneaking up on her from behind tombstones. Buffy could see three more in the far reaches of the cemetery in the bushes. One vamp made his move, jumping high, intending to completely take the girl by surprise. Buffy and Willow both were about to shout a warning, and Buffy - stake out already - was ready to go rescue the defenseless girl, except . . .

With a sudden rapid movement, the girl dropped her purse, pulling a stake from it with her left hand. At the same time she twisted underneath the airborne vamp, and perfectly staked the vamp in his heart, making him look surprised and then dust right there. The other vampires jumped out and attacked en masse. The girl twisted around, and landed a perfect roundhouse kick on one of them, making him stagger back. She switched the stake to her right arm, in time to stake an advancing vamp. She crouched low, and kicked the legs out from under the still staggering vamp, smoothly ducking underneath another vamp's onrushing punch. She jumped up, smashing her elbow in the punching vamp's chin, even as the other vamp dropped unceremoniously to the floor. The vamp she elbowed staggered back. Another vamp threw a charging punch with his right, and she grabbed his arm. She twisted it, as she went underneath. The vamp still going forward was yanked up off his feet, going horizontal a meter above the ground. The girl let go, and continued her twisting motion and added a kick, slamming her foot in the still airborne vamp's face, sending him flying in the direction he came from. He landed and tumbled onward, even as the girl put her right foot down, jumped up with it, and made a twisting airborne kick with her left, catching a vamp across its face, and launching him off his feet. The vamp flew a good two meters through the air before it landed painfully against a tombstone. The vampire she had roundhouse-kicked earlier and then dropped on the floor had recovered, and attacked while the one she elbowed was busy recovering. Again the girl crouched beneath the vampire's clumsy attack and swung her right leg around in a vicious kick at knee height. The kick hit, followed by an audible snap, and the vampire cried out in pain as it dropped to one knee, a piece of bone from the knee the girl kick sticking out. Kneeling like that, with its chest put forward was an inviting target. A moment later it was dusted by the girl, and then she jumped high into the air backward. She twisted her body in a back flip.

The vampire that she had elbowed, stopped its advance and looked up stunned. The girl grabbed his head, her entire body vertically above him, and she suddenly violently twisted around. The vampire's neck snapped audibly, and it sank to its knees, unable to make any nerve connection until months later when his spine and nerves would be healed, except it would never get that far. The girl rapidly twisted onward and down. She landed on her feet, and the vampire crumpled forward, into a quick upthrust stake and it turned to dust. The vampire that had tumbled backward attacked her again. She blocked his first punch, and second and moved into his defenses. A moment later the stake did its work.

That left only the vampire the girl had launched off its feet, and she turned to it. "Slayer," the vampire whispered in shock, and quickly fled. The girl however didn't let him go. She ran after him, jumped, and gave him a flying kick in his back. It gave a painful yell, going rigid with the pain and shock to its back, at which time the girl's stake penetrated its heart, and it too turned to dust. The girl then looked around, satisfied at a job well done, and made several quick back flips back. She went smoothly into a sideways flip, picking up her purse, made two steps putting her stake back in, and then jumped onto a two-meter high tree branch, before disappearing into the foliage.

Buffy and Willow were stunned, and still looked at the last position they had seen the girl. Buffy had her stake still futilely in hand, as the two turned their heads as one to the now empty graveyard. "Whoa," Willow was the first too speak.

"Yeah," Buffy confirmed putting her stake back.

"She was even better than you are, Buffy," Willow said in wonder, looking at her friend.

Buffy whipped her head around at Willow, and said, "She was _/so/_ not better than I am."

"Yes, she was, didn't you see the back flap on the vamp's head, and then snap?" Willow asked excitedly.

Buffy folded her arms across her chest, and said, "I can do that too, if I want too. She's just showing off, it'll get her killed."

"She took on six vamps, Buffy, and they didn't lay a finger on her," Willow explained in wonderment, and excitement.

"She's good, but she's not better than I am," Buffy sulked, and then suddenly realized something. "We should report this to Giles . . . Giles is still in the library, right?"

"I don't think he's been in the library _/all/_ summer, but he should be back there now, tomorrow school stars and all," Willow answered her only girl friend.

"Good, let's go," Buffy said.

-----

A short while later in the Sunnydale High library

"A girl, you say? Taking out six vampires with ease?" Giles said with cultured British voice, filled with intrigue. "Interesting."

"She was better than Buffy," Willow answered, nodding her head in excitement.

"She was _/not/_ better than me. Granted, she comes close, but I'm the Slayer, she's _/not/_ better than me," Buffy said with a childish pout, her arms once again folded defensively across her chest.

"Hmm," Giles said, cleaning his glasses thoughtfully, and in some frustration at the girls' over emotional behavior. "Now that I think about it, she _/could/_ be a Slayer, if you . . ." Giles looked carefully at Buffy, who looked somewhat pained at him. ". . . clinically were not amongst the living long enough, it might have triggered the activation of another Slayer." Giles put his glasses back on, and added, "But I would think the Council would have given me word of such a staggering development, unless . . ."

"Unless what?" Willow asked Giles her patience running dry. Buffy stayed watching.

"Unless like you, Buffy, it was a Slayer the council hasn't found," Giles told the girls with revelation. "That seems highly likely, because even if the Council didn't send me word, and the Slayer and her watcher are here, I would have gotten word from her Watcher, so she probably doesn't have one . . . if she _/is/_ a Slayer of course. Well, I'll give the Council a call."

The two teenagers stayed standing and silent for a few moments, and then Buffy asked, shaking her head slowly from left to right, "Soo . . . we can go? No research, or more patrolling, or anything?"

"You can leave if you want to," Giles confirmed, and Buffy immediately bolted, pulling Willow along. Giles sighed.

Outside of the library, the two walked to the exit of the school. "Where were we going again?" Buffy asked frowning.

"Oh! Xander's letters," Willow exclaimed with a big smile. "Come on!"

-----

"Here," Willow said, handing the letters over. After taking the letters out of her desk she sat onto her bed, next to Buffy. "They're in order."

Buffy looked at the stack of envelopes, concern growing when she noticed the writing on the stamp was some Asian iconography script. Buffy quickly opened the top envelope and took out the letter, written by hand of all things. She noticed the date, and the place: Jusenkyo, China.

"Jusenkyo?" Buffy said with a frown.

"It's somewhat in the middle, I looked it up," Willow answered, and then gestured for Buffy to continue reading.

Buffy felt somewhat relieved that Willow too had to look this up, for a moment there, she had a rather huge attack of feeling stupid. She took Willow's suggestion, and started reading.

Willow Rosenberg

6305 Westminster Place

94148, Sunnydale, CA

United States of America

Jusenkyo, China, June 10, 1996

Hey, Will,

It's me, Xander. I'm in China, can you believe it? And I'm still alive, so don't worry, not a vampire either. Ok,

Wait, you probably want proof, huh? Two words: yellow crayon!

Buffy looked up from the letter, and asked of Willow, "Yellow crayon?"

Willow smiled shyly, and blushed somewhat as she remembered herself from back then. "It's how Xander and I met, I'll tell the story some other time, read on," Willow answered her.

Buffy smiled at her friend, and indeed looked down, to read more.

Ok, proof delivered, time for the lowdown. So, there I am, just coming home one evening, when these Asian dudes in suits stand in the hallway. They probably shot me with tranquilizers, cause the next moment I know, I collapse, and wake up in this cage in a cargo hold of a plane. Some Asian dude strikes me with a whip, and puts some disgusting food in the cage after I flinch backwards. Bastard.

Some time later one of the dudes in the suits comes up to me, and you know what he told me? They'd seen my father's opinion of me, and gave him an offer he couldn't afford not to accept. My nice, sweet, father that drunken, son of a bitch, assh sold me into slavery! That's right, they were planning on training me to be a sex slave for some filthy rich non-white woman or gay man!

And you know what's really evil? I'll never enjoy watching Orion slave girls again!

Buffy looked up, "Orion slave girls?"

"Green alien scantily clad girls, who are bred and raised as sex slaves by the males of their species on Star Trek," Willow explained to her friend.

"Oh," Buffy said, thinking over the letter, shocked, and smiling despite it. Albeit struck through, it still had been readable. Drunken? Opinion? Sold into slavery!? The picture of Xander's home life changed radically; to a drunken, verbally - and physically? - abusive father, and a mother that couldn't be much better if she had let Xander be sold. And yet, despite all of it, he joked about it, like all of it didn't mean a thing. She could see her best male friend watching scantily clad green women on tv, and damn, she felt sorry for him he couldn't enjoy it anymore, and much more so she reflected upon her own past months. First there was guilt that she wasn't there to protect him, and second . . . shame. She had died before vacation, and Xander had used CPR to bring her back. Then there was the souled vampire Angel, and she really didn't want to think about him, or whatever it was that was between them. In response, she had spent the last months depressed, pained, hurt, irritable and bitchy to her father. Xander's experiences had to have been as bad, or worse then hers, and here he was joking about it, seemingly taking life head on, not letting it get him down for even a moment. Her opinion of him changed drastically. She read onward.

On the plus side: I'm hot enough to be a sex slave!!! So there, take that! Doing the Scooby dance!!

Buffy couldn't help it, she laughed out loud. Willow joined her, but more subdued. Suddenly it came out. How it happened, Buffy couldn't grasp, but the tears jumped from her eyes. Still laughing, she somehow managed to cry audibly at the very same time, for him, and for herself. She felt Willow's arm circle her waist and hug her close, the redhead's head rested on her shoulder, and instinctively she rested her own on Willow's. After a few minutes of crying, in which Willow had joined in, Buffy slowly stopped.

"What was that about?" Willow asked very softly.

"I died," Buffy whispered, shocked at how good the laughter and crying had done her, "Xander saved me, I haven't even thanked him yet, and now this, he was sold into slavery . . . god, I've been feeling so . . ." Willow hugged her close again, she didn't need to explain. Buffy felt grateful and went back to the letter.

Let me tell you, Will, the Chinese mob has nothing on praying mantis ladies. Four days, and the first chance I got, I took. I escaped, and ran like hell. And ran, and ran, and hid. The bastards came after me, and then the best thing that ever happened to me, happened right then, when I needed it most. Almost a full day after I took off, with the Chinese mob right behind me, shooting at me, and barely missing, I ran into these Japanese martial artists on a training trip through China : Genma and Ranma Saotome, father and son. With the Chinese mob right behind me, and me breathing like a dog, I scream for help and explain : 'Chinese mob, behind me, kidnap, slave, me.'

They understood! Both them, and some guy that was a guide to the Jusenkyo training grounds that I found myself at that moment - although I wouldn't find that out until later - had some very rudimentary knowledge of English. You should have seen them, Will! They kicked butt! I wouldn't be surprised if they could beat, Buffy, that's how good they were. They disarmed the thugs in no time, they even bent the barrels with their bear hands, and proceeded with an asskicking I won't ever forget, and neither will the bad guys! They notified the Chinese cops - by telegraph, no phone! - I told them where they had kept me, and one Chinese mob operation shut down! Yay for me! Yay for my rescuers!

Now comes the best part! Get this : Genma took me under his wing, he's training me in the 'Saotome School of Anything Goes Martial Arts'! We found out my hyena possession and living on a mystical convergence all my life increased my chi - whatever that is, but apparently it means there is some serious possibility I could be good at this stuff.

Well, that's all for now, Genma is calling for me to get my lazy ass in gear. I just wanted to let you know I'm fine, and that you don't have to worry about me. I'll be back in good old Sunnyhell for the next school year - oh! with a surprise you wouldn't believe if I told you!

I'll write more soon. Take care, and don't forget to have fun, even if it is without me.

Your bestest friend forever and ever,

Xander.

PS: They don't have Twinkies over here!! Aaaarggghhh!!


	2. part 2

Author's notes: I recommend reading this on my website, the letters will be much clearer and a lot more fun too read!

Anthony Harris opened his front door in irritation, yelling, "WHAT!?" Then his eyes widened in shock at who he saw.

"Hi, dad." The fist that was swung at the same time, was completely unavoidable to the senior Harris. With a groan of pain Anthony Harris was launched off of his feet, and landed a meter further, groaning with a broken jaw. "Don't worry, dad," Xander Harris said with a big grin. "I won't be staying, I'm just here to get whatever stuff of mine you haven't thrown out yet." Xander waved some papers above his father's face, and said, "See, emancipation papers and everything, I even got a cheap apartment already. And oh, yeah, I'd like you to meet these fine gentlemen in the suits. I believe you know them as the F, B, I!"

Indeed an FBI agent entered the building, "Anthony Dennis Harris, I am Special Agent Don Ballard. You are under arrest for slavery, aiding and abetting kidnappers, and trafficking of human beings. You have the right to remain silent, everything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney, if you cannot afford an attorney the state will provide you with one. Do you understand these rights as I've explained them to you."

"He's lying!" Tony Harris said desperately, trying to point at Xander, but had difficulty with that in his now handcuffed state.

"Oh, no, he isn't, we've seen the proof," Ballard answered him as he pushed Xander's father out of the house.

Another FBI agent said with a shaking head, "Selling your own son into slavery, you really are one of the lowest pieces of shit I've ever come across!"

"Ta ta!" Xander called after his father, waving overly sweet. Suddenly he turned around grinning evilly. "Oh, mom! YOU BETTER HAVE TWINKIES!!"

-----

Buffy looked up from the letter, smiling, shocked at the way Xander once again joked. "He's . . . wow," Buffy muttered with a big smile.

"Yep, next," Willow said excitedly, and so Buffy put the letter back in the envelope, but underneath the pile. She took out the next one and started reading.

Willow Rosenberg

6305 Westminster Place

94148, Sunnydale, CA

United States of America

Jusenkyo, China, June 17, 1996

Will, my sweet Will-o-whisp!

I love China! And I love Japanese even more! Turns out the tour guide knows a whole lot more English than we first thought! He's been our interpreter, not to mention teaching me Japanese, and my two new best MALE - won't ever forget you - friends in the world better and better English.

I finally understand what 'chi' is too; my life force! They were right! I AM good at this. It's amazing how fast I pick this up, it's almost as if I did this before and I just get reacquainted with it. It's awesome too! Of course the Saotomes still kick my ass... and boy is it sore! I'm rubbing to get the sting out as I write this!

Anyway, I'm still in one piece, more or less, and I'll return home later a whole lot better equipped to kick vampire butt! So don't worry about me, I'll be back before you know it.

Your friend,

Xander

PS: They don't even know what Twinkies are!! Sacrilege!!

Buffy looked up from the letter with a big smile, and Willow smiled back. "I didn't know Xander could be so . . ." she shook her head. As Willow nodded she quickly put the letter back and got the next one.

Willow Rosenberg

6305 Westminster Place

94148, Sunnydale, CA

United States of America

Jusenkyo, China, June 31, 1996

Hey, Willow,

Sorry I didn't write sooner, but Genma has been putting me and Ranma through some serious, serious training. My muscles ache practically constantly, there are times when I couldn't even lift a pen!

Anyway, yesterday I managed to land a punch on Genma! Yay, me! Of course he landed twenty on me before I did so, ow. I still can't even come close to touching Ranma though, the guy is just too slick, too fast and too agile.

I've been wishing I knew what Buffy's address is where's she's staying this summer, so I could send her letters too. I've sent one to her mom's, you know to reassure her, I decided not to send any letters to Buffy at her mom's address though, figuring by the time she'd be back and gets to read them it's kind of useless.

Ranma is a cool guy! You'd love him. I bet you would get along with him as great as you get along with me! I think we can call ourselves friends for life already.

And Genma rules! The dude is a sneaky bastard let me tell you, but he loves Ranma. If there was anything he could do about it, he'd never let anything happen to Ranma. He's the father I never had, and damn, I'm lucky, he actually sees me as somewhat a surrogate son, I think.

That's it for now, don't stay moping behind the computer screen!

Yours truly,

Xander.

PS: There still aren't any Twinkies!!

Buffy blinked, and said, "It seems he's had a great time."

"Yeah, I wish Xander's father had sold me along with him," Willow said with a wide grin. "Grab the next!"

Buffy nodded, and quickly put this letter away and got out the next.

Willow Rosenberg

6305 Westminster Place

94148, Sunnydale, CA

United States of America

Guilin, China, August 13, 1996

Yo, Willow!

You'll never guess what happened. We went to an honest to god village of a lost tribe of Chinese Amazons! Boy, were they hot! Legs up to their necks, perfectly formed asses, and breasts, mmh! Not to mention perfectly trained, very strong women, no bimbos among the Amazons! Oh, sorry, that's probably not what you want to hear, huh? Well, as a consolation I can tell you I bedded none, in fact they all tried to kill us. We ate the main prize in an Amazon martial arts contest, so if it was the prize anyway, Ranma decided to take on the winner so we would win it fair and square. Not surprisingly Ranma won the fight, but instead of congratulating him, the Amazon gave him the kiss of death, and then they chased after us, trying to kill us.

Buffy laughed out loud, and looked up at a smiling Willow. "That's so typically Xander, his stomach gets him in trouble. Those three must be pretty much the same," Buffy said with a wide grin.

"Yeah, that's Xander alright, I could tell you stories," Willow answered the blonde, who grinned and turned back to the letter.

So, we hightailed it out of there, as you can guess. Outnumbered 50 to 1 are a little too great odds. We're on our way back to the coast, and then home, but since we don't have a plane like my way in, or a car, or anything else, it'll take a while: China is a big country.

On our way back, we keep training of course, and yesterday I beat Ranma! That's right, I beat him with a really sneaky combination he didn't expect! Too bad for me he was not amused and proceeded with a revanche match in which he kicked my ass ten ways from Sunday - I'm still counting the bruises - but I actually defeated him!

I hope you're having as great a summer as I am, Will, take care!

Xander.

PS: HEELP!! Twinkie withdrawal!!!

"Ouch, Twinkie withdrawal, that sounds bad," Buffy laughed, and Willow joined it. Once they were done laughing, Buffy quickly got out the final letter.

Willow Rosenberg

6305 Westminster Place

94148, Sunnydale, CA

United States of America

Hong Kong, UK, August 24, 1996

Hey, Willow,

I hope they send this letter by airmail or I'll arrive before it does. I had a hell of time convincing the American consulate I really am Alexander LaVelle Harris, and that I was sold into slavery - thank you Chinese police and the Saotomes for confirming that - and that they should issue me a new passport, but I finally did! The Saotomes helped me so much, but here our ways will part. They'll take a boat to Japan, while I'll come back to you, my fair redheaded lady! You haven't taken another knight into your bed have you?

The thousand mile walk, a lot of it running, did hell for my physique! I'm a lean mean fighting machine now; not quite as good as Ranma, but I'm pretty close.

I'll quit this now, I'm going to be back soon anyhow. And oh, yeah, don't forget the surprise you won't believe!

See you soon, Will, I can't wait!

Xander,

PS: Soon I will have Twinkies again! YEEESSS!!

Buffy laughed out loud, and then chuckled. "God, Xander has such a one track mind," Buffy said with a wide grin.

"He's a guy . . . and I've got the hots for him," Willow told Buffy with a grin. "I'm hopeless, aren't I?"

"Yup, clear cut case of guys on the mind syndrome," Buffy told Willow with an almost perpetual grin. Willow gave the Slayer a look. "Don't worry, we're all effected, no way to escape that gruesome fate." The both of them laughed together.

"He should be here by tomorrow," Willow muttered hopefully.

-----

Angel paced brooding through his apartment. Buffy had been gone all summer. Was there any hope for them. With a sudden crash the front door swung open, and a voice called, "Well, hello, if it isn't Mr. Soulful."

"Xander, what are . . ." the souled vampire stammered as Xander casually stepped closer to him.

"I'm gonna kick your ass, 'cause I haven't had any Twinkies in the past two months, and it's seriously pissed me off," Xander cut him off with a malicious grin. "I don't suppose you cared enough to keep track of me and Willow during summer, did you? I guess not, or you'd have looked into my disappearance."

Angel was getting fed up with the boy. He may be one of the good guys, but he would not let himself be talked to like he was some flunky. He threw a right cross, and then the most amazing thing happened. Xander twisted away just slightly, his right arm moved to the right Angel's punch. With a quick motion Angel was doubled over, using his own momentum against him, and his arm was placed into a lock. Before the vampire could even wipe the surprise from his face there came a powerful kick to his knee, and he sank to the floor with a cry of pain. The arm lock disappeared, only for his arm to be grabbed by Xander's left arm. A moment later Xander's right arm slammed in the vampire's chest, and then shot upward painfully in his throat. To Angel's surprise he was pulled off the ground and a moment later he felt his back painfully land on Xander's knee. Xander then grabbed the souled vampire by his collar and pulled him off the ground. A moment later Angel found himself placed against the wall, his feet ten or twenty centimeters above the floor.

"Unlike you, Dead Boy, I haven't hidden behind the television," Xander told Angel with a vicious grin. Angel gasped as the pains that still ran through his body. "I'm going to tell you this only wants, you cowardly bastard, you will do absolutely nothing romantic toward Buffy, she tries something with you, you refuse, and if you don't comply to my demand I will dust you, sour or no soul."

"What is it, boy, jealous?" Angel asked Xander.

Xander grinned evilly, and said, "Absolutely, but that's not what this is about. Imagine your sixteen-year-old sister coming home with a demon-animated corpse over two centuries old, that can't walk in the sun, and that gained her heart by being coward hiding in shadows, bribing her affection with gifts and going the mysterious routine. Then imagine that demon-animated corpse lying through his teeth, potentially getting the girl killed, rather than fessing up he doesn't know something and could have gotten a quick crash course if he confessed."

Angel looked stricken at the smiling Xander. He continued, "You see, Angel, I've had plenty of time to think. If you don't have breath, how do you speak?" Angel swallowed, looking into the angry eyes of the youth before him, and the fact that was still held up against the wall showed him the boy wasn't playing without a full deck of trump cards. Xander continued, before he could answer, "And even _/if/_ there's some mystical reason, or you thought you needed to be alive for some mystical reason for it to work, you could have always helped with the heart compressions. You didn't, you just didn't know CPR, and you lied through your teeth in order to look good, Buffy's life be damned."

Angel let his head drop in shame. "So, jealous or not, in love with or not, do you think anyone who would care about Buffy would let a sickening, lying, spineless bastard like you get his claws inside of her, hmm?" Angel shook his head. "I didn't think so. If there's just one decent bone in your body, _/vampire/_, you will keep your paws off of her for her sake. And if that isn't enough, than for your own selfish sake, for I _/will/_ stake you, even if I have to go through Buffy to do it."

Xander then let the vampire go, and let him drop unceremoniously to the ground, and walked out of the apartment, leaving a dazed, souled vampire behind.

-----

Buffy and Willow sat on a bench on school grounds. Grass and a tree were behind them. It was morning, but son was already shining. The two girls looked around, Cordelia and her Cordettes were already parading around like the own the place, dividing potential boyfriends amongst each other, and more importantly which were too low for them, and which girls weren't allowed to date them. Obviously Buffy and Willow would only be allowed to have anything to do with the 'lowest of the lowest'. Willow was used to it, Buffy felt ashamed that she once had been like that.

"Oh, yoohoo! Boys! I'm new here, could someone point me to the principal's office?" a coy, sweet voice called out, making everyone look around toward it. And just like that, balance of power would never be the same again. The boys' jaws dropped - juniors or seniors it didn't matter - the girls glared. Even Willow and Buffy, thinking of themselves as rather open minded glared. For there she stood, the girl that had spoken. Her face was made up with deep red lipstick, her raven hair reached till her shoulders, her eyes and cheeks had a light color. She was pouting and the expression on her face was a mixture of innocence, predatory, and sly sexiness. Her eyes shone with confident power, her body was in a position that screamed 'Sex!' and so were her clothes. Shiny, short black boots with middle-high heels supported legs that went up and up, and the muscles in her legs were defined, showing strength yet softness. A small black skirt didn't even come half-way her knees. Her belly button was visible, and above that was a loose top, but tight enough show off her c-cup breasts. The top was sleeveless, and it wrapped around her arms, leaving her shoulders bare, and allowing a view of the top of her breasts. She had a back pack casually slung over her right shoulder, and a short black leather jacket over her right, and to complete the sultry look, she was peering over a pair of small, black sunglasses.

As boys immediately moved from their position toward the wet dream of a girl, she superiorly pushed her sunglasses back upward with her right index finger, while keeping her mouth suggestively open. Girlfriends angrily stopped some of them, while they protested they were just going to do their civil duty. The girl's mouth curled into a sly smile, and slowly started walking. Guys held their breath, for she did just walk, she glided forward, her hips swaying in a suggestive manner: 'I am sex incarnate, I'm the best fuck you could possibly imagine.'

Buffy and Willow glared as the girl sensually walked forward, stopping in front of them where she was met by a throng of boys, all looking with open mouths, if not outright drooling. "That bitch," Buffy whispered, as she took in the best looking girl she had ever seen, and obviously had the guts to show it _/all/_ off.

"That slut," Willow agreed, looking openmouthed a hole mixture of emotions burning to her young body. When the new girl turned her head towards them, angling her head so she was looking over her sunglasses again, and winked at the two of them both jerked in shock. Willow turned to Buffy, and asked, "Do you know her?" Buffy shook her head, glaring with outright jealousy at the girl.

Cordelia was the only girl not glaring with jealousy, seeing as she was the only one capable of competing _/and/_ having the self-confidence and sense of superiority not to be put off by another hot, and instantly popular girl. The queen of Sunnydale High, or Queen C, as she liked to be considered walked confidently to the girl. She held out a hand, and the new girl shook it. "Hi, I'm Cordelia Chase, it's so nice to meet another girl who understands style," Cordelia said.

"Lexa Horne," the girl introduced herself, articulating the words so that she showed her tongue playfully moving in her tongue. She then moved her sunglasses down a bit, and checked out her competition. Cordelia was wearing a smooth dress, that went all the way up her throat, the top part hugging her breaths. The lower part almost reached her knees. Lex then said, "Sweety, you have style, I grant you that, the style of a nun."

Cordelia's face was priceless, her jaw dropped in shock. Willow couldn't believe her ears, had this new girl just put Cordelia off like she was yesterday's trash? Yep! "Go Lexa," Willow softly said with a smirk.

Buffy, less interested in Cordelia's downfall, not to mention the fact that a little over a year ago she'd been on the receiving end, put her arms across her chest, and said, "She's still a slut." Willow hastily nodded in agreement.

Lexa casually turned to a little guy to her left, and asked, "What's your name, handsome?"

"J-j-jona-jonathan," the guy answered, and everyone looked even more shocked. Jonathan handsome?

"Well, Jonathan," Lexa said sultry. She put her jacket down, placing in the insides of her left arm, and wrapped that arm around his, not bothered that she had to tilt over just slightly. She walked forward, somehow managed to stay sexy even tilted over, and Jonathan walked along, and they left the throng of people. "Could you tell me where the principal's office is?" she asked sweetly. Jonathan nodded, and gave her directions. Lexa broke contact and turned toward him. "Thanks, handsome," she said and then bent at the waist. People - hornier getting boys, and ever more jealous and angry becoming girls, Cordelia included this time - had seen the way the skirt had smoothly fell along Lexa's ass, showing off the perfect rounding. Now that she bent over, the sexual tension jumped another hundred degrees Celsius. She placed kiss on Jonathan's forehead, and then turned toward the entrance of the school. With a casual flip, she placed her jacket back over her shoulder, and walked toward the school's entrance. Each of her steps dripped with sex appeal. Girls, not all the way on the top of the food chain, and even a few who were tuned to look at the boy, wondering if they had missed something. Jonathan just looked straight ahead with a huge grin, after all, he had been only centimeters away from barely covered breasts, that had been on perfect display as Lexa bent over in front of him.

"She's such a slut," Cordelia commented loud enough, it did not seem to change people's opinions of the super hot girl that had just tore through Sunnydale High like a tornado, and she hadn't even been here five minutes.

"We best get inside, Willow. She's evil, I can tell, we have to find out what her plan for world destruction is," Buffy muttered with simmering anger. She got up and pulled Willow along.

"Uh, ok," said the stumbling redhead. Once she righted herself, she asked, "Have you seen Xander yet?"

-----

The Slayer and the Slayerette quickly walked into the school grounds, heading toward the principal's office. Halfway there, they both suddenly felt arms wrapping around their shoulders, and a hated voice saying, "Hi, guys?"

Buffy and Willow jerked, and then turned around, looking straight into Lexa's breasts. Then they looked up into her smiling face. "Uhm," Willow peeped out, "Do we know you?"

"No, but I know you," she answered with a big smile and held out her hand. Tentatively Buffy took it, and Lexa said, "I'm Lexa, Xander's cousin." Buffy and Willow's eyes widened at that revelation. Lexa then switched shaking hands to Willow and continued, "My parents died in a car crash two weeks ago, and I came to live with Xander's parents. Tony probably thought he could sell me for even more cash than Xander. Thank god, Xander came to rescue me from that hell hole last night. I live with him now, he's got his own apartment."

"Xander?" Willow asked excitedly. "So Xander is here?"

"Yeah, he's around somewhere, the guy is really illusive. Listen, I got to get to class, see you guys later, ok?" Lexa said, and then turned around and sped off.

"Ok," Buffy answered. Willow and Buffy turned around, and Willow's mouth curled up into a smile as they walked unconsciously toward the library. "What?" Buffy asked.

"You thought Xander's cousin was evil," Willow accused Buffy with a wide grin.

The Slayer folded her arms across her chest, and said, "It could have been. You saw the way she dressed." Willow giggled. "Hey!"

"Let's just get to Giles, perhaps he found out something about the girl from last night," Willow suggested, stifling her giggling as best as possible. Buffy pouted.

-----

Lexa disappeared into the men's bathroom. She turned on the hot water faucet, and then she went into a stall. Inside she pulled out a make-up pad from her bag and rapidly cleaned off her make up. Very quickly she removed her clothes, and put on jeans that she pulled from her bag. Then pulled out a sleeveless tight shirt that she put on, much too tight for her breasts if she tried to button it all the way closed. Her boots then went off and she put on sports shoes. In less then two minutes she was finished. She slung the bag back over her shoulder and went out the stall. She held her hands under the now hot water, and splashed it on her face. She looked up, and Xander's face looked back at her from the mirror. "Hey . . . Jesus!" a guy's voice sounded.

As Xander buttoned closed the shirt, he turned his head, and asked, "What?"

"For a minute there I thought I saw a girl," the guy answered him.

"Are you insulting me?" Xander asked, and the guy quickly shook his head seeing the deadly muscles of his arms on display. "Thought so," Xander said. He grinned and left the bathroom.

-----

The Slayer and the redhead reached the library door, when they heard a familiar voice, "Hey, guys!" They veered a bit to the side, so they could see around another student and saw Xander. The martial artist quickly ran around the other student and reached them.

"Xander!" Willow squealed out in happiness at the return of her best friend. She ran, and jumped around his neck.

"Hi, Will!" Xander exclaimed as he hugged her close and whirled her around full circle. "I missed you.

"I missed you too!" Willow exclaimed and then was put back on the ground, she giggled. She took a step back, and joined Buffy in ogling Xander. Now a step back, and her enthusiasm tempered she could take him in properly. The jeans were tight, and the bare arms . . . oh boy, if Willow thought Xander was hot before; she could see the clear muscles read to ripple, ready to strike, ready to hold and keep save, and hug . . . Willow swallowed.

"Buffy," Xander said, and enveloped the stunned Slayer in a bear hug. "I missed you too, so glad I'm back."

"I'm glad your back to, Xander, and thank you for saving my life," Buffy answered, copping a feel of his arms as she hugged him back. -Very glad,- she thought. -Oh, god! Where did that come form?-

"Just doing my civil duty," Xander answered the blonde that he hugged fiercely. God, it was good to be back.

When Xander stepped back, smiling, Willow took notice of his shoulder length hair, and ooh, didn't she want to run her fingers through those long manes. Instead she said, "New hair style, and clothing style too."

"Yeah, like it?" Xander grinned.

Buffy and Willow nodded simultaneously. Buffy shook her head, and said, "Xan, let's go see Giles. Last night we saw a girl dust six vampires, we think she might be a Slayer. Giles has looked it up."

"Ok," Xander said confused, his eyes twinkling. The three turned to the library doors and walked in, as Xander asked, "But can't there be only one Slayer?"

"Yeah, one Slayer is called when the other died, and I was dead for a few moments there, thanks again, Xan," Buffy answered with a wide grin.

"Quite," Giles sounded from the back of the room as he stepped down from a ladder and turned around. He did a double take at the much more leaner Xander, and then said, "It's good to see you again, Xander. After Willow came to me telling me you had disappeared, and I tried to locate you, there were times when I thought we would never see you again, I was most pleased to hear she received letters from you."

"Are you certain you weren't disappointed, G-man?" Xander asked with a grin, the three Scoobies arriving in the middle of the library.

"I must admit," Giles stated completely seriously, "a small part of me was."

"Did you just make a joke, Giles?" Xander asked.

"Don't be silly, and focus," Giles admonished him, and stepped forward. "I called the Council, and indeed a new Slayer was called." Everyone's eyes widened, except Giles's who casually continued, "Her name is Kendra, her watcher is Sam Zobuto, and she's in Equador. Whoever the girl was you saw yesterday, Buffy, Willow, was most certainly not a Slayer."

"There's really another Slayer?" Buffy wondered out loud, thinking what she was like.

"Yes, the council swears they sent a memo," Giles stated, his tone betraying his skepticism at that.

"A second Slayer," Willow wondered out loud.

Giles collected his books, and said, "I suggest you three get to class before you're late, and keep an eye out for this mysterious girl. Talk to her if you can, but don't provoke her, she can be quite dangerous if she took out six vampires on her own."

"Yes, Giles," the three Scoobies chorused.

"Very funny, now scoot," Giles told them. The three friends turned around and walked to the door.

"Ooh, Xander, we met you're cousin, now she's something else!" Willow told Xander with a big grin.

"Oh, yeah, if she weren't my cousin, I'd know what I'd be doing," Xander answered with a wide grin.

Buffy gave him an elbow. He made a sound, while she smiled, "There are ladies present, Xander."

"Hey, where's my surprise!" Willow suddenly asked, remembering his promise from the letters.

Xander grinned at Willow, telling her, "Have patience, Will. It'll get here."

"Why didn't you bring a surprise for me?" Buffy pouted with sad, sad eyes.

"Buff, the surprise for both of you, just be patient, you'll get the surprise soon enough," Xander answered smiling slyly.

"Oh, tell us what it is!" Buffy whined.

Xander looked at her and said, "Buffy, you need to buy a dictionary, and look up the word 'surprise'." Buffy gave her best pout, and Xander told her, "Sorry, Buff, I cast an anti-Buffy-pout spell before went here, because I knew you'd be trying one."

Buffy continued the pout, folding her arms across her chest, and said, "You're no fun."

Willow giggled at her friends banter.

Giles watched them pass through the doors, and muttered, "It's miracle the world hasn't been doomed yet."

-----


	3. part 3

"So, Lexa said you had your own apartment?" Buffy wondered, taking in the new improved Xander. Dang it, he was still the old loveable Xander-shaped friend, but Xander-shaped was a whole lot better shaped then before. She shook her head; she had Angel, she couldn't do that to Willow, it was something to ban from her mind.

"Yep," Xander told her with a grin. "One whose previous owner was killed by a vampire, rent is _/way/_ down, sometimes vampire attacks are good for something after all."

"Xander!" Willow said in horror.

"Relax, Wills, I know the guy's dying was bad, but you gotta see the silver lining, you know? Anyway, I've been decorating, Lexa's been helping, when it's finished, you're all invited to the big unveiling of Case del Xander!" Xander exclaimed with a big grin.

"You better not forget that, we expect pie, we expect a party!" Buffy gushed grinning widely.

"Don't worry, Slayer appetite is calculated in," Xander replied grinning as they slowly got closer to their class room.

"Are you saying I'm fat?" Buffy latched on.

"No, I'm saying you've got a good metaba-bo . . . help me out here, Will," Xander returned, blanching as he couldn't remember the last part of the word.

Willow grinned, and said, "metabolism."

"Yeah, that!" Xander said, pointing at Willow and then looked back at Buffy, who seemed to have accepted the explanation.

She smiled, and asked, "So, what have you been doing since you got back?"

Xander grinned, remembering, and then said, "Well, the first couple of days I was stuck in LA, at the FBI turning my father in, and going around with judges to get 'emancipated' as they call it, while I searched for the apartment via the net. Then when they all accepted the evidence I presented them, and they believed that I wasn't a prankster we all returned here. First I went over to pick up the keys for my new apartment, there was a deadline, and then over to my parents' house. You should have seen the look on my dad's face when they slapped the cuffs on him. They dragged him away, and then I went further inside, finding a scared Lexa." Xander smiled broadly. "Ow!" he exclaimed as two elbows hit him. "What was that for?!"

"We have to keep you from fantasizing about you're own cousin, Xander," Buffy explained.

Willow added, "Yep, incest is unsavory."

"I was fantasizing about my dad being hauled away, and who he was going to share his cell with!" Xander protested. "You two really have a low opinion of me, don't you!?"

"Oh," Willow blanched.

"Sorry, Xan, but you're a guy," Buffy explained pitifully as they reached the door of their classroom.

Xander shook his head, and said, "You two need to stop reading the feminist propaganda, men think about more than sex."

"Yeah, food, drink, and sports," Willow answered with as straight a face as she could muster. Buffy giggled.

"Hopeless. The female race is hopeless," Xander said, shaking his head and stepped into the classroom, ahead of his friends, who giggled more.

-----

Buffy felt her air being restricted. She tried to gasp for air, but couldn't. The hands around her neck got tighter and tighter; hands belonging to Giles! In desperation she clawed at his head, and to her shock the skin gave away, and she pulled it off, revealing: the Master's face! He growled in satisfaction . . .

Buffy's eyes snapped open, and she looked around her bedroom; it had been a dream. Her eyes latched onto a figure standing at the window, and she recognized Angel. "Can I come in?" the vampire asked, even though he was already in.

"Feel free," Buffy commented somewhat annoyed.

"I'm sorry if I waked you," Angel said, remembering Xander's threat, and the line 'If you have but one decent bone in your body . . .' God, Buffy had such nice kissable lips . . . stop it, business only!

"Is this a social call?" Buffy bit in irritation at about everything.

"Uh, no," Angel answered, still going over Xander's disturbing visit to his apartment.

"Oh, I get it, grave danger then, home sweet home," Buffy bit at him, glaring at him.

Angel was rather shocked at the hostility, but then, that was probably a good thing. "The vampires are on the move, they are up to something, just a heads up."

"Thank you, but I can handle it, is that all?" Buffy asked of him.

I shouldn't, I shouldn't, Angel thought, fidgeting. "Well, you didn't call or write, I was wondering . . ."

"No, I wasn't moaning about you every moment while I was gone," Buffy bit at him.

Angel looked a little shocked, and asked, "Did I do something to offend you?"

"Nope, and I'm really sorry if you think I should have been moping about you, but I haven't, and I've moved on, to the living," Buffy told him snidely, and then turned around on her side her back to Angel, and pulled the covers tightly.

"Yeah, ok, that's good . . . I missed you," Angel said with a little pain in his voice.

Buffy turned around quickly, starting, "I missed you . . ." Angel was already gone.

-----

"So, Angel came by last night," Buffy said, as she opened her locker and got out a few books.

"Really? Was there, uh . . . kissing involved?" Willow asked excitedly.

"Yeah, and groping, and grinding?" Xander asked half bitterly, his eyes shining with a brand new hardness that had slipped in after being sold into slavery and training to become a powerful martial artist.

"Hormone overload you two? Get your minds out of the gutter. Not every boy-girl meeting is about hunkadory, he came by to warn us that the vampires are up to something," Buffy explained with a shake of her head.

"Oh, well," Willow said subdued, as the three of them started walking.

"Will, that reminds me," Xander said, happy it seemed the corpse was keeping to the warning. "This afternoon, at the library, I want to start training you."

"Huh? But . . . no-no, brainiac hacker here, not of the fighting," Willow told him, tightening her hold on her books.

"Will, I want you to be safe. I won't put you through weight training and everything if you don't want to, but I want you to be able to get out alive if you're surrounded by a couple of gang members on PCP, okay?" Xander told her with a little force, mixed with pleading. "I'll teach you some basics of Hapkido."

Willow frowned, "I thought you were taught something else . . ."

"Yes, "Anything Goes" Martial Arts," Xander answered, making the quotes with his fingers. "Emphasis on 'Anything Goes', that's literally. Anything that works, is used. Hapkido works, it's all about using your opponents strength and speed against him. Which means that even a sweet little, no-strength girl like you can kick vampire ass, ok?"

"Yeah, Will, that would be good," Buffy added, thinking it would be nice if Willow could handle herself as well. She was still wondering how good exactly Xander had gotten, perhaps she should spar with him.

They walked into Cordelia then, who asked them, "Well, if it isn't the three musketeers."

"Uhm, Cordelia, the three musketeers were cool?" Willow asked rather shocked.

"So?" Cordelia asked.

Xander nodded, and told her, "You know, I would have gone for 'the three stooges', myself?"

Cordelia looked at him uncomprehending, and replied, "Whatever. I just meant that you're always together."

"I would have gone for the three stooges as well," Buffy told Xander slyly.

"Listen," Cordelia said drawing their attention, "I wanted to ask if you've fought anymore squicky things lately."

Xander gave a fake laugh and said, "Silly Cordelia. Squicky things at that party."

"Huh? No, I mean the demons and the vampires we fought at prom night," Cordelia replied. "You know, grrr."

"You m-must be joking, vampires, demons? Ha, ha, good one, Cordelia?" Willow answered, as the three of them quickly walked onward.

Xander pulled Cordelia along, and said softly, "You see, Cordelia, you can't tell anyone about the demons, and Buffy being the Slayer, or everything will go very, very wrong, ok?"

"You haven't spoken to anyone about our adventures, have you?" Buffy asked softly.

"What? Are you crazy? And everyone knowing I hung out with you three losers on prom night? Don't worry, your secret is safe with me," Cordelia told the Slayer.

"Well, perfect," Buffy said with a sweet smile, adding softly, "You won't tell anyone I'm the Slayer, and I won't tell anyone you're a moron." Then Buffy walked past Cordelia and Xander and Willow.

"Now that's a good insult," Xander observed with somewhat wide eyes.

"A little too good," Willow whispered.

Cordelia just huffed, and said, "First a slut, now a bitch." Then she walked off.

Xander and Willow looked at each other for a moment.

-----

While Xander was teaching Willow the basics of kicking and punching without hurting herself, Buffy was training against the wooden dummy, with Giles watching. She punched the pad representing a torso, and punched harder, and faster. She beat against the wooden arms on occasion, and beat the mid section again. She beat the 'head' with even greater fervor, and then went back to the torso. Hitting, it again, and again, going faster and faster, her face in a grimace.

Giles finished taking a sip from his tea, and said, "I think that's about enough, Buffy." Buffy only increased her speed, and the determination etched in her face. "Buffy? Buffy, it's enough!" Buffy increased her speed again, then suddenly reared back, and kicked out. The entire wooden dummy snapped at its central pole and was sent flying away.

"Well, we can safely say you haven't slipped in your training over the summer," Giles said with a somewhat amazed face.

"I'm ready," Buffy nodded in agreement. "Whatever they'll throw at me, I'm ready."

"You certain?" Xander asked, and left Willow behind, joining Buffy in the central circle.

"You think you can take me, Xan?" Buffy grinned at him, almost cruelly. "You think you've trained enough to take on a Slayer?" Buffy jumped up and down a bit to show off how limber she was. Xander gave a shrug, and stood casually straight.

With a roar Buffy threw a punch. Xander casually moved a side, and grabbed her wrist. He twisted around his axis, and pulled Buffy along, three quarter circle and tossed her aside. She went high into the air, and crashed through the wooden railing, before she landed on the upper level. "Watch the books!" Giles cried on in horror, realizing this might not have been such a good idea after.

Buffy looked up, surprised. "Fine," she said getting back up. "First point for you." Buffy then took a two step run on and jumped. Xander flipped backward, throwing his legs up, smoothly stretched out side by side, and catching the flying Buffy straight in the chin with both feet. She flipped back until she rammed against the raising to the other level, cracking the wall slightly. Xander was back in the same position again, smiling as Buffy groaned lightly, and got back up, looking at a smirking Xander. Willow and Giles looked with shock at the display, two moves, to hits on Buffy, none on Xander.

Buffy was a little more cautious this time, she neared Xander fists raised. She made a rapid jab to Xander's left, but he danced only his upper body to the right, and used his left hand to move Buffy's punch aside. He made a quick step forward, diving into the opening in Buffy's defense, putting his back in her left's path. His right hand shot forward, and his vertical fist hit her on her breast bone. Since she was still moving forward, the difference in momentum lifted her off her feet and she landed on her ass skidding back. Deciding punches didn't work, Buffy got up and delivered a rapid snap kick, that Xander avoided by ducking down and swiping her remaining leg out from under her, making her fall to her ass once again. Buffy made smooth jump to her legs, and pull herself up movement. The problem for her was that Xander had anticipated it. He grabbed her right arm with his left, twisted it and locked it beneath his right. His left hand then went into a snapping hit, his palm ramming in her chin and snapping her face to her left. At the same time he twisted to back and to his right, using his weight, and her imbalance in the proper direction caused by the hit to pull her along. Half-way the movement, he let her fall back, releasing her arm from the grip, and grabbing her wrist with both hands. Thus he used the farther circle moving faster than closer to launch her toward the entrance of the library, where she crashed against the few steps, and rolled upward until she lay in front of the door.

Buffy groaned, and pushed herself up, looking at Xander, and one shocked redhead, and one shocked watcher. "Fine," Buffy bit out in irritation. "So you trained hard, you're stronger than me, big deal. I'm the Slayer, it just means I have to put some effort into training, and I'll kick your ass a week from now!" The blonde then got up, and stalked into Giles small office to change clothes.

"No, you won't," Xander replied but she was long gone.

"Why not? She _/is/_ the Slayer," Giles asked still surprised at the ease with the boy in sweat clothes beat Buffy.

Xander turned to Willow, and asked, "Did you see? A little bit of what I've been teaching you was in there." Willow - not in workout clothes, she'd have to bring them the day after - nodded dumbly. Xander turned further to Giles, and explained, "I didn't beat her on strength or speed, Giles, hell, I barely even used any of my own. I beat her on skill, I used her own strength and speed against her. She can get herself stronger and faster, but that simply means that I'll give her an even bigger defeat." Giles looked thoughtful. "Giles, if this is the extent of Watcher training, it's pitiful," Xander said with a shake of his head. "Against a true martial artist, a Slayer with this training level wouldn't stand a chance, as you could see."

Buffy came back out, dressed in normal clothes again, leaned on the railing, smiling, she was obviously in a little better mood now. "Hey, Buffy, perhaps you should let Xander train you!" Willow exclaimed excitedly at the prospect.

"No need, Willow," Buffy said cooly. "Giles, you and I are going to up my training right?"

"Uh, right," Giles answered.

Buffy then turned to her friends, and said, "Hey, guys, are we going Bronzing tonight."

"Sure!" Willow answered enthusiastically.

"Sorry, guys," Xander answered disappointed. "I've still got a ton of work to do at my new place . . . but Lexa'll be there! She's been saying she's been itching to dance! I'll tell her to go to Bronze and look you up, it'll be an all-girls-night out for you, you'll love it!"

Willow looked disappointed at first, and then excited at the prospect of getting Xander's cousin; the one that had talked Cordelia down so incredibly well! "All girls!" Willow said, never having had an 'all-girls-night' before. "That could be fun, right Buffy?"

"Yeah, sure!" Buffy answered, and then said, "Well, I gotta go, have fun training you two." Then she was off.

"Hmm," Giles said thoughtfully. "You really should train Buffy, Xander. For one thing, not having to train Buffy will save the function of my wrists. I just wish I knew a way to make her understand reason."

Xander looked at Willow, and smiled, saying, "Don't worry, Giles. I know how to get her there." Willow blinked and looked behind her, seeing just stone raising on top of which was the second level, then she looked back in confusion. "Give me a week."

-----

Lexa a.k.a. Xander stepped in front of the bronze entrance, and grinned. She wore the same skirt as in school, but she had worn a tight, spaghetti strap top, that hugged her frame, and offered a lovely cleavage. Her grin widened, as a guy he had never truly been hot, as a girl, he was scorching. The bronze was his or hers tonight, and nobody was going to stop her. He stepped inside, and looked around, quickly spotting Buffy and Willow. With her hips swaying, she walked over to them, taking the time and effort to let most guys now she was here. An occasional wave of her hand, a wink, and the most guys had spotted her, looking at her with big appreciative eyes. And none of them would get even a touch: any guys she would take apart would be geeks, and less then jocks. The 'popular' guys she would burn to the ground with remarks none of them would recover soon from. Payback time for all the times they had ignored or belittled Xander Harris.

Soon the bombshell joined the redhead and the Slayer, and smiled at them broadly. Girls night had another advantage, she would get to find out thinks she would never find out as a guy, no matter how much Buffy might still consider him 'one of the girls'. "Hi, guys," Lexa greeted the two.

"Hi, Lexa," Willow said, taking her eyes of the obviously displayed boobs, stopping her wish she had such a magnificent pair. Next to her Buffy did the same. Willow took in Lexa's sly smile and her sparkling eyes, and couldn't help but feel something, something odd. There was something about Lexa, now that she had the time to take her in as a friend, not a rival. She didn't quite know what, but she felt odd somehow.

"Hey," Buffy greeted, a little jealously. Damn, how come the new friend had to look like an Amazon sex goddess. She realized this is what Willow must have felt like when she came blazing into town, and felt sympathy for her redheaded friend, who seemed to be taking this a whole lot better than she was.

"So, any hot guys around?" Lexa asked sitting down on a stool, and starting to take in the room. "Some heartbreaker I shouldn't let get to me?"

Willow blinked, and then said, "Well, uh, that guy over there, in the sports jacket, Linden Ashby, he's gone through a few girls already."

"Got ya," Lexa said with a grin. This was so much fun.

Buffy was next, pointing at quite a hot guy, who was pointedly not from the popular crowd. "That's Jarod Daniels, I think he's pretty cute, and I think he's unattached, right Will?" Willow nodded, and Lexa took the guy in. He wore jeans, had short brown, nice volume hair, and wore a tight t-shirt showing off his lower arms. He wasn't quite as muscular as Xander, but Lexa could see the attraction if she put herself in that position.

"Nice," Lexa commented.

Willow then pointed at a blonde talking with a blonde girl, and said, "Alan McCarthy, he's so yummy."

"And stupid," Buffy added, nodding resolutely. "He tried to chat me up a few weeks after I got here first." Buffy then shook her head, and said, "You might as well date a chimp, you'd get better conversation."

"Really? I didn't know, too bad," Willow returned with a frown. "So, Lexa, Jonathan? Do you really think he's handsome?"

"Hmm, who? Oh! The helpful guy yesterday," Lexa looked up, faking remembering him, and said. "He's a bit short, could do with a slightly better wardrobe, but yeah, he isn't bad. If you're looking for long term substance, not a quick role in the hay, definitely. Handsome. What do you guys think?"

Buffy crinkled her nose, and said, "But he's so . . . so . . . geeky." Willow looked down. "I didn't mean it like that, Will. You know what I mean, he doesn't . . . he . . . how do I put this?" Lexa waited, after all, Lexa wasn't supposed to know about Jonathan. "He's got no . . . confidence, I think, he just hides in a corner."

Willow looked further down, that described her as well. Deciding not to give Lexa the wrong impression, she looked up at her, and said with a false grin, "Of course, the two hottest guys in town aren't here."

"Oh?" Lexa perked up, and Buffy looked over.

"Xander and Buffy's yes / no boyfriend Angel," Willow announced, making a bright face.

"Angel?" Lexa asked, but before they could answer. "Oh! The coward, pedophile vampire hiding in the shadows playing the mysterious routine to prey on teenage girls! Xander told me to look out for him! He's your _/boyfriend/_?" Buffy's jaw dropped at that description. Not even Xander had called Angel that in front of her face. Willow's face was equally shocked. "Did I say something wrong?" Lexa asked nervously.

"Angel isn't a coward!" Willow protested for her friend's sake. "He's helped us lots of times! He dusted Darla . . . who attacked him, uh, uh . . ." Willow scratched her head trying to think of something, and then looked helplessly at Buffy.

"That's what you disagree with?" Buffy asked rather shocked. It left to whole pedophile and preying part rather unanswered. Willow reddened and shrugged. "Well, starting with coward then, he's not, he came with Xander to rescue me against the Master, which was this ancient powerful master vampire."

"That's not how Xander tells it," Lexa answered her with a sour look. "Xander says he had to threaten Angel at cross length and stake point before he would come along and lead Xander to the Master's lair."

"He's lying, he's just jealous," Buffy defended Angel.

Lexa looked at her, and then Buffy looked over at Willow. "Yeah," Willow said, nervously.

"Hey, just because it's Buffy's boyfriend doesn't mean you have to defend him, you know," Lexa told Willow sourly, perhaps a little too sourly. "I thought Xander was your best friend."

"Willow?" Buffy prompted, looking at the nervous redhead.

Willow looked with a weak expression to Buffy, and said, "I'm sorry, Buffy. But the way Angel always acts and the way Giles was about this prophecy, I doubt Xander is just making it up. Xander said he was going to get a way to find out where you went, so _/he/_ went to Angel. I don't what happened at Angel's, but if fits. Besides, why would he lie to Lexa?" Buffy blinked several times, and then looked down. "And you know, hiding in shadows, that's true," Willow added. "Pedophile preying on girls, is a way to interpret his actions."

"Let's quit with the hole booboo act," Lexa talked again, drawing the other two's attention. "We were with Xander, I believe. I know he's hot, and if I weren't his cousin, rowr, but you really think he's the hottest guy in this entire town?"

"Oh, yeah!" Willow said, nodding vigorously. "I've had a crush on him in ages, great friend, loyal, heroic, and now he comes back all muscley and oh, boy. I wish he saw me standing, and not just Buffy here." Willow sighed all gushy.

Lexa, or Xander blinked, his heart beating in his chest. -Whoa!- he thought rather shocked. -Willow? A crush on me? In ages?- He took Willow in another time, looking at her differently, wondering.

"Hey, it's not my fault," Buffy pouted at her best friend. "I can't help it, I told him 'no' to the dance. But Xander, hottest of the town after Angel? Well, he definitely isn't ugly, and he did come back with those muscles, and he saved my life even after I crushed his heart . . . I don't know about the entire town, but . . . well . . . he's not bad." Buffy looked down, looking at Willow out of the corner of her eyes. The redhead looked at Buffy as well, not really knowing what now.

"The mood officially went below freezing," Lexa said and turned to look at the dance floor. "Time to heat it up. Let's go dance."

"Huh?" both Buffy and Willow said.

"Dance, you know, move to the music?" Lexa asked them.

Buffy shook her head, and said, "I don't really feel like dancing."

"Well, Willow, let's go," Lexa said with a grin, and grabbed Willow by an arm, and pulled her along.

"Hey, but, I . . ." Willow protested without success. "I don't really dance."

"Nonsense, Xander tells me you dance great," Lexa said easily pulling the diminutive redhead along. Lexa put Willow across from her, and smiled at Willow, starting sensual motions. "Come on, Will, you can do this, follow my lead, almost every guy will fall all over you."

"But, but, guys all over me, doesn't sound as nice as it sounds. Wait, that came out wrong," Willow stuttered out, but the music slowly made her move timidly.

"Trust me, Will, you're sexy, you're hot, think you're Buffy, think you're Pamela Anderson . . . think you're Cordelia Chase; you're queen high bitch, and nobody can touch you, nobody will dare ridicule you, think you're the hottest girl in town," Lexa encouraged, starting to roll her hips, bringing her ass out regularly.

"Eep?" Willow asked looking at the hottest girl in town in her opinion. Lexa had an idea, she suddenly went around Willow. Once at the back she wrapped her right arm around Willow's waist, and pulled her back against her, putting the redhead's head right against the top of her breasts. As Lexa undulated, started dancing sexy, Willow was forced to go along.

"See, you can do it, just let yourself go," Lexa encouraged, and slowly Willow got more into it. This felt good, leaning into Lexa felt good, letting the music rule her body felt good. "See, all the guys are staring at us."

Willow gulped, opening her eyes, looking around the room. It seemed they were only one of three couples left dancing, but all eyes were on them. "They're staring at you," Willow whispered nervously. "You've got breasts, you're hot."

"You got breasts too, Will, check out how they poke out a bit when you put your chest out," Lexa whispered back, knowing the whispering would look extra hot. Willow did look down, and noticed Xander's cousin was right. "Next time, just where something tighter that doesn't cover up so much. They're staring at _/us/_, Willow, they're watching two hot babes doing a sexy dance. A hundred different lesbian fantasies are shooting through their brains, all where they get to join in. And the girls, they're all jealous."

Willow gulped hard, taking in the guys looking at the two of them, and feeling how Lexa maneuvered them in a twisting motion, letting Willow see the other side, more guys watching as their bodies slowly melted to one, moving sexier and more suggestive with the moment. She noticed girls watching with their arms folded across their torsos, obviously not liking this development. Willow swallowed again, and nervously looked over to Buffy. To her shock she saw her blonde friend smiling, and then giving her the thumbs up.

The next moment came the shock off her life, when Lexa called out, "Are you guys just going to stand there and ogle us, or will you join in!?" She specifically didn't mention 'what' they got to join in on. Willow let out a whimper, as slowly the guys came on the dance floor, and started dancing around the two of them. To her shock, Willow felt Lexa twist her around, so they were across from each other again, but still close. "Keep going," Lexa whispered, bending over to Willow. "Just follow my lead, let yourself go." Willow looked around nervously, but felt like her body had assimilated the movements, and she continued doing them, feeling more self conscious by the moment. Then Lexa caused another shocking moment. She twisted away, pulling a guy in her place, and she went to dance with a few guys. Willow gulped, wanting to quit, wanting to sink through the floor, her movements starting to become jittery.

"Hi, I'm Ben Gibson," the guy said with large eyes, taking in Willow. She wasn't exactly his idea of perfection, but there was something about the wallflower look dancing so damn sexy. The contrast turned him on.

Willow swallowed nervously, and answered, "W-Willow Rosenb-b-berg."

She felt another two guys dance close enough that they touched her on occasion, instantly making her more nervous, and right after making her calm down with the cool realization that she was not being made fun of, that guys were dancing with _/her/_. "I hope you don't mind me saying it, but you're sexy," Ben told her.

"S-sexy?" Willow asked, feeling the music taking over again.

He nodded, and added, "Are you guys . . . a couple, or were you just teasing?" Willow did a double take. Teasing? Her? She looked over to Lexa, who was easily riding up to guys, surrounding herself by hot guys, yet for some reason pushing equally hot, but more popular guys away. She was teasing. Willow Rosenberg had been and was teasing guys! And they liked it!

"Teasing," she said with a private smile, trying the word out on her tongue. "We were just teasing."

Buffy watched, jealous now. She really wished she had gone out with them. She couldn't believe it. Willow was dancing like a professional seductress, and she seemed to be becoming better and learning more by the second. She was smiling, and talking with a guy. Dang it! She looked over at Lexa as she made the art form of Willow into a lewd festival of groping and touching; she did it with the guys, and they returned the favor! Damn, the girl had guts, and she had turned Willow around like that, by not giving the redhead a choice. Buffy watched her friends enjoy themselves for several more minutes, until the song ended, and the band took a break. A few moments later a grinning Lexa, and a flushed, and embarrassed Willow returned to the table.

"I can't believe I did that," Willow said looking away from the blonde.

"Hell no, Will, you were great!" Buffy told her with a smile. "Lexa went overboard, you just enjoyed yourself."

"Hey!" the raven-haired girl protested. Buffy just grinned at her indicating she was just joking, damn it, she was starting to like her.

Lexa fidgeted suddenly, and the other two saw the uncertainty. "What?" Buffy prompted.

Lexa looked at them nervously, and then said, "Xander said you wouldn't mind, but I've been burned . . ." She slowly bent forward and so did Buffy and Willow. ". . . the way you two are, I think he's right . . . I'm kinda gay."

Buffy's and Willow's eyes widened suddenly and they sat back up straight. "Kinda?" Willow asked.

"Well, entirely," Lexa replied.

"You didn't just . . ." Willow pointed at the dance floor.

"No, no, no," Lexa stated quickly. "I didn't try to cop a feel, but if I did, was that so bad? I didn't grab your breasts or ass did I?" she added filled with uncertainty.

"I guess," Willow said slowly, remembering the girl's hands on her stomach, and her head against her breasts hadn't really felt bad.

"Willow, she's gay, that's great, I'm completely non-judgmental," Buffy said with a big grin: no competition! "Friends together?" Willow and Lexa nodded with smiling. "You know what," Buffy added, "Let's go to my place, watch some tv, I'm getting rather tired, with Angel waking me up in the middle of night yesterday and we can just sit and chat!"

"Yeah, ok, I gotta recover from that anyway!" Willow said pointing at the dance floor. When the redhead and the raven-haired girl left, plenty of guys and a few girls watched them go with disappointment, realizing they were too late to ask them out.

-----


	4. part 4

Cordelia stepped out of the Bronze, muttering, "Stupid Lexa, stupid Willow. Who do they think they are, dancing like that? _/I'm/_ Cordelia Chase! _/I'm/_ the queen of Sunnydale- ow!" Cordelia staggered forward when the pain hit the back of her head. She turned around and yelled at the vampires before she realized they were exactly that, "What's the big idea? Well?"

Cordelia blinked when she recognized the vamped out faces, swallowed and took a step back. "You can't even knock out one girl?" one vampire asked the other. That one shrugged and then before Cordelia could run, he landed a solid haymaker on her chin, and she went out cold. The other vampire than picked her up, and they took her along.

The three girls walked through Sunnydale side by side, entering a cemetery park for a shortcut. Xander, or better Lexa had casually without thinking about it put her hands behind her head, and Willow and Buffy looked at Lexa's protruding breasts, wishing. Buffy looked down at her own smaller than Lexa's but by no means non-existent breasts. It was depressing enough her thoughts went to the other depressing thing that was in her life right now. "Uhm, Willow, do you know what Giles did with the Master's bones?" Buffy asked.

"Yeah, what did . . ." Lexa started and quickly caught herself. "Uh, bones? Don't they dust?"

"Oh!" Willow said excitedly always enjoying sharing her knowledge. "The Master was this really old, really powerful master vampire, so powerful his bones stayed intact. Giles and I buried him in the next cemetery, in consecrated ground, big ritual and all."

"Let's go see," Lexa said with a grin, lowering her arms, and making her breasts look less competitive, much to Willow's and Buffy's relief.

A few minutes later they were at an empty grave. "Shit," Lexa commented.

Suffice it to say, the rest of the evening wasn't quite as enjoyable as it had been intended to be. The next morning the three girls barged into the library with Giles, who quickly and unsubtlely broke away from a kiss with Jenny Calender, the computer teacher. Giles looked over at the three young women, and his eyes took in Lexa with widening eyes, quickly averting his eyes when he felt Jenny growing miffed. "Ah, what can I do for you, ladies?" Giles spoke with his British, cultured voice.

Although the girls had noticed the kiss, they didn't comment, having more important things to worry about. "He's gone, Giles," Buffy spoke bitterly.

"Who is?" Giles asked.

"The Master!" Willow spoke with fear.

Buffy nodded, and said, "We went by his grave last night, it's empty. They dug him up! You assured me it was over, you told me he was gone, over and done with!"

"Well, I've never heard of a vampire resurrection ritual," Giles said with trepidation, making Buffy glare at him, and no slight glare either. He took off his glasses and started cleaning them, saying, "I'll start researching right away."

"You really think they bring him back?" Jenny asked a little fear in her voice, she still remembered that night.

"Ooh!" Lexa exclaimed and quickly walked over to Giles. She turned around and rode her butt against him. She looked up in his astonished eyes, blinked her eyelids suggestively, yet innocently, and said, "But a big strong man like you will keep me safe, won't you, Mr. Giles?"

"Uh, uh," Giles said not knowing where to look, trying to keep his eyes off of the very visible cleavage from this position. Buffy and Willow snickered as Jenny made an angry sound from deep withing her mouth.

"Ah, don't worry, Ms. Calender, she's gay, she just likes to play," Willow said with humor in her voice. The teacher looked at the girl who stood up, stroking her skirt straight.

"Willow, great way to ruin my fun," Lexa commented with a scowl.

"Sorry," Willow muttered looking at the ground.

"I suggest you get to class, I'll let you know what I find," Giles told the three girls.

A few moments later the three of them were outside the library, and Lexa said, "Say you later, my class is this way. Bye."

"Bye," Buffy and Willow said as they saw Lexa sped off. They watched her disappear around a corner, and Willow said, "I like her."

Later in class. "Harris! You're late! Again!" the teacher scolded as Xander stepped into the classroom. "Take a seat, quickly!"

"Sorry," Xander said, and quickly sat in a table next to Buffy, and behind Willow, giving Buffy a smile.

Later that day, after sundown

"Ah! Here's something!" Giles exclaimed looking in the book. Everyone else closed their books and went over to him. "Here is a vampire resurrection ritual, but it only works if the bones are intact."

"Check, one down, what more do they need?" Xander asked with a scowling look.

"Ahm," Giles said reading through the ancient text. "It's a little fuzzy, but it says they need the person or persons closest to the vampire upon his death."

"That would be me," Buffy stated with rock-solid face. Everyone looked at her. "You know, mortal enemies, killing him, you can't get much closer than that without becoming pelvic."

"Yes, well, I am not entirely certain," Giles said, lifting his glasses.

"We should continue looking," Willow said nervously, and then a window shattered. With several loud sounds a rock crashed in front of them on the floor. Buffy picked up the rock, and noticed the piece of paper attached to it. She took it and read the message.

"They've got Cordelia, they want me to come to the Bronze," Buffy said coldly, angrily, and went over to the weapons locker. "I'll go get her, you stay here."

"Uh, what?" Xander asked in surprise. "I vote strength in numbers."

"No, I'm the Slayer, I can handle this!" Buffy told him angrily.

Xander rolled his eyes, and said, "I'm the one who kicked your ass remember?"

"Stay here, Xander," Buffy told him somewhat angrily. Now armed, she headed toward the exit.

"Buffy, what about this having 'trap' written all over it?" Willow asked desperately trying to keep Buffy here.

"I can handle it!" Buffy told her more forcefully.

"Damn it, Buffy, you can't go off- . . ." Giles started.

Buffy interrupted him, "I _/said/_, I can handle it! You stay here and be safe!" Buffy then disappeared through the door, leaving four angry people.

"You're not going to follow her?" Willow asked Xander who grinded his teeth together.

Xander shook his head, and said, "You heard her, she can handle herself. Besides, I'd like to think I'm a little smarter than to walk straight into a trap. I want to find out exactly what this ritual is and how to stop it before I just run off and hope for the best."

Buffy walked along the alley to the Bronze, and halted. She quickly twisted around and looked at Angel. "What are _/you/_ doing here!?" Buffy asked pissed off.

"Helping you. You need someone to watch your back," Angel answered her just a little nervously.

Buffy opened her mouth to talk, frowned, and then asked, "Were you _/spying/_ on us!?"

Angel looked down, moved his hands nervously and said, "I wouldn't exactly call it- . . ."

"You were!" Buffy accused, growing even more angry. "You were spying on us! Do you get off on watching girls from the shadows!?"

"No! That's not it at all! You can't do everything alone!" Angel said ashamed at the accusation that was so close to Xander's. "I have no interest in you . . . anymore; I realized that. You vampire Slayer, I vampire, you sixteen, I two-hundred forty, you in the light, I on fire, it wouldn't work, it's unfair to you."

Buffy smiled predatorily, circling Angel, who turned with her to keep his eyes on her. "Vampire, and vampire slayer is right. Wanna fight?" she asked, grinning.

"Uh, what?" Angel asked confused.

"Oh, come on. You must have wondered whether you could take me, like you said, vampire and vampire slayer. Let's see who's stronger," Buffy said with a grin.

"Buffy, I think Cordelia's life is a little bit more important than which one of is better in a fist fight, don't you think so too?" Angel asked. Buffy eyed him, eyes darkening with anger. Then they cleared and she straightened up, walking passed him toward the Bronze entrance, growling internally.

Vampire and Slayer carefully entered the empty night club. They looked around, and up, trying to see where the traps lay. Finally they noticed a girl with long dark brown hair, she was whimpering. At first glance it looked like Cordelia and Buffy got more careful, Angel looked around. "Apart from her, I don't hear or smell anyone," Angel said slowly then focusing on the girl's smell, his eyes widening.

He didn't need to say, Buffy already knew, Cordelia might be screaming profanities, tears might even come from her eyes, she might even cry from pain, and cry for help, but she was far too proud to whimper. "That's not Cordelia!" Buffy said with a little shock.

The girl turned her head, revealing her vamped out face, "That's right, I'm not Cordelia, and you will _/never/_ find her."

Buffy half ran over to the now laughing vampiress, and pulled her to her feet by her collar. "Where is she!?" Buffy yelled at the vampire as Angel closed.

The vampiress laughed, and said, "Don't worry, she'll be fine, until we bring the Master back, and he will tear you limb from limb."

Buffy took it in, and Angel's earlier comment that no one else was present and her eyes widened. She tossed the vampiress to Angel, and said, "Keep her alive and secured." Buffy then ran off, and Angel called after her.

Giles made a triumphant sound, and said, "Here, the Latin was translated wrong from the Sumerian. It says 'nearest' which was translated to closest, 'nearest' as in the people physically closest to the Master when he died!"

"What!?" Xander said and took in Giles, Jenny and Willow, and they realized the same thing. "This is a trap, just not for Buffy, let's get out of here!" Windows shattered, and the doors to the library flung open. "Shit," Xander said, pulling a stake.

Buffy ran, practically bashing the library doors open, and she slowed down as she looked at the carnage. Tables were turned, broken chairs lay everywhere, parts of the railing were broken, and there was dust everywhere. She carefully looked around, walking further into the library, shocked. She had failed, because of her hotheadedness her friends were taken or dead. There was a roar and a crash, making Buffy turned around, just seeing a banged up Xander finish smashing his fist through a table, wood splintering and flying around. "Xander," she said, being a tiny bit relieved, if he was still alive . . .

Xander took Buffy in, and said, "Buffy." He took several steps forward, looked at her angry, and told her, "I got twelve, Giles two, Willow and Jenny one. I was trying to keep one from taking Willow away when at least three attacked me in the back, for you see, there were at least twenty-five." Buffy stayed silent, and looked at him. Xander continued, "If you were here, if you had stayed just a bit longer . . ." Buffy turned her head away, feeling guilt racing through her mind.

"We need to find them." Xander and Buffy looked up, seeing Angel standing in the doorway.

"Buffy," Xander said, demand in his voice. Buffy turned around to look at him. Xander took a step forward and grabbed her forcefully by the collar of her leather jacket. "Whatever they do to Willow, I will do to you." Buffy flinched at the cold fury in Xander's face, and he let her go. "So, fearless leader, what do you think we should do now?" Xander asked with a mocking tone.

She whipped her head around, and asked Angel, "You kept her alive right?" Angel nodded.

The vampiress was tied to the pool table in the bronze, and laughed at Buffy's order to tell where the vampires were. "What are you going to do? Kill me?"

"Yes," Buffy said with an evil smile. She pulled her necklace with the cross from her neck, and then grabbed the vampiress' mouth and forced it open, dangling the cross above it. The vampire's eyes widened in shock.

"Uh, uh," Xander said, grinning widely, walking next to Buffy and leaning on the long side of the pool table. Buffy looked up confused, and the vampire relieved. "Choose something she doesn't need to talk, just in case you damage it." Buffy grinned, and the vampiress' eyes widened again: perfect target. Buffy placed the lower end of the cross directly on the eyeball, immediately producing smoke and a sizzling sound.

"What you should be worried about though," Buffy said continuing to grin, as the vampiress screamed and screamed out in pain. "Is the way we'll spend the time until then." Buffy pulled the cross from the vampiress' eyes, who's one good eye still looked up in shock. "Get it? I'm thinking I'll find out first if dying lessens the sensitivity in your clit."

"I hear the soles of the feet are particularly sensitive as well," Xander offered, his arms leaning folded on the pool table.

Xander, Angel and Buffy looked at the scene in the rundown factory. The Master's bones lay on a stone table, and Giles, Jenny, Cordelia and Willow were hung over it, heads and arms down. "You're going to be sorry," Willow whimpered looking around the room and the vampires, "Buffy will come for you!"

"If we want to get them out of safety without them becoming targets, we need a diversion," Angel said, pointing at the heightened platform from which they could pull the sacrifices to safety.

"For once I agree with you, vampire," Xander said bitterly, overseeing the battle field.

"You go save them, I'll provide the diversion," Buffy stated resolutely, eyes shining with bloodlust.

"What are you going to do?" Xander asked her.

Buffy smiled, and said, "I'm gonna kill them all, that should divert them enough." Then she went for the quickest way down. Xander and Angel gave each other a look, and then they snuck over to where Angel had pointed earlier.

A black vampire was making a grand old speech, and then more vampires stood around the stone altar, and started chanting. With a loud groan a vampire staggered into the circle, and dusted a moment later. The stake embedded into him then dropped to the floor. Buffy walked into the room, and said, "Hi, is this a private party, or can anyone join?"

"You have nerve Slayer, kill her!" the black vampire snarled, and several vampires went to attack Buffy.

"Buffy!" Giles exclaimed with a little relief.

"I told you! I told you, didn't I!" Willow exclaimed as she watched Buffy kick a vampire halfway around the room, and dust another one with her second stake.

Xander and Angel had reached the platform in the meantime and pulled the sacrifices to safety, after which they tied them loose. Buffy at the same time broke a vampire's arm, and dusted another one. She jumped over the altar and kicked a vampire back. The vampire staggered back until she crashed into a wooden spike. She looked shocked at the protruding point, and then burst into dust. Another vampire attacked Buffy, and he hit her with a kick. She staggered back, dropping her stake and it rolled underneath something and out of range.

Xander and Angel watched it happen, and gave each other a look, then both jumped down, leaving the four untied sacrifices safely up on the platform. Willow looked over the railing and saw how Buffy grabbed the vampire that had kicked her. She punched and punched and kicked it over and over, not stopping with hurting it until quite some time and threw it away. Angel was there, and dusted the vamp, while Buffy was already pummeling the next one. Seeing the vampire numbers diminished, especially after Xander and Angel both staked another vampire, Willow quickly went down the stairs, joining Xander. "What's she doing?" Willow wondered, watching how Buffy did anything but a quick kill she usually did.

"Working out her issues," Xander said coolly.

Buffy threw the vampire whose ass she had thoroughly kicked over to Xander, who easily staked the already half-dead vampire.

"That's it!" the black vampire of earlier roared, coming out of a side room, holding a sledgehammer. "You've interfered in our plans long enough! You will die, Slayer!"

Buffy looked at him, and looked to her other side, where a vampire she had beaten earlier had scampered to its feet and was ready to attack. She also saw Angel who was on that side of the building was too far away to stop it, and then both vampires charged. Buffy noticed a wooden torch that was one of six that were standing against the altar. She grabbed the long torch and twisted it around, ramming the non-burning end in the onrushing vampire to her left, and then used the torch end to put the black vampire on fire. The black vampire screamed in pain as the flames licked his body, until his body was consumed and the hammer fell to the floor.

"It's over," Willow said in relief looking around and finding no more vampires.

"Not yet," Xander said as he watched Buffy pick up the sledgehammer. Behind Xander and Willow, Cordelia, Giles and Jenny arrived.

Buffy held the hammer out and watched the massive thing for a moment. Then with a roar of release crushed the Master's skull. She swung again crushing the neck and collar bones, then again to crush the chest. She went on until there was no skeleton left, only pulverized bones and a few pieces. Buffy let the hammer drop, and looked dazedly around as tears started to form in her eyes and she broke down crying. Angel watched her, hesitated for a moment, and then turned around walked out of the factory.

"Now it's over, and Giles, you should have done that from the start," Xander said, and pulled Willow along, walking to the crying, desolate Buffy.

"Yes, well . . ." Giles muttered in answer, resetting his glasses.

Willow enveloped Buffy in a hug, and Xander wrapped both of them in his. Buffy let her head land against his chest as she cried harder, and Willow put her cheek against Buffy's.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," Buffy whimpered with shame over how she had acted.

Half an hour later a small boy crept out of a hiding place and took in the pulverized bones. "I hate that girl," he muttered sadly.

Giles and Buffy carefully walked across the school lawn. "Giles? How can I face them? I almost got Willow killed on the second day of school, and Xander is seriously pissed with me because of that. I wonder if he's going to hang me upside down somewhere," Buffy said, muttering out the last part.

"Hmm? Well, Buffy, don't worry, they're your friends. Besides you will mess up much worse than you did yesterday in the future, so . . . that sounded better in theory," Giles said taking a bite from his apple while he had Buffy frowning at him.

"I'm horrible," Buffy muttered.

"Just get to class, and let them make that judgement for you," Giles said and gave Buffy a gentle push toward the entrance. Buffy sighed, then bit her lip. She sighed again, and resigned herself to her fate.

A few moments later she nervously stepped into the classroom and sat down at a desk in front of Willow. Xander sat next to Willow, diagonally right behind Buffy. "So, Buffy, sleep well last night?" Willow asked.

Buffy turned around, and Xander added, "Because if you did, we were thinking about taking in a movie tonight, and we wouldn't want to intrude on your catch-up sleep." Buffy looked at them, and then smiled. "Don't take this the wrong way, Buffy," Xander said quickly, his smile gone, "we forgive you this time, but you ever go on an 'all high and mighty' tour again, saying we're useless, I'll kick your ass all the way to LA and back."

Buffy nodded, "Got it, Xand. You two are my friends, and you're never useless." Xander nodded satisfactorily, and Willow smiled wider.

At lunch break the three friends were walking to the lunchroom, when Xander looking at his watch said, "I gotta go guys, I've got to get to job interview."

"A job interview?" Willow asked astonished.

"Yeah, living in your own apartment and having a second mouth to feed is seriously bad for the wallet. I need to get a part time job, that fills in the gaps. So, see you later, ok?" Xander greeted them. Xander of course had gotten his job before today, but it was a good excuse.

"See you later, Xander," Buffy greeted back, relieved, and feeling much less paranoid.

"Yeah, hurry back soon," Willow said, and then both of them watched Xander as he walked away, taking in his backside. "Hmm," Willow said with a smile.

"Stop ogling our best friend, Will," Buffy admonished Willow with a big smile on her face.

"Only if you stop first," Willow returned, making Buffy give Willow her best 'who me?' look. "Don't play the innocent with me, Buffy Summers, I'm not blind you know." Buffy tried to come up with an answer.

"Hey, guys!" a familiar female voice called. They turned around and saw Lexa coming closer. "How are you guys doing? Xander told me about the whole eek, business," the hot brunette said with a smile.

"We're okay, right Buffy? We're okay," Willow answered nervously, remembering the sexy dance of a day before that, and getting worked up.

"We're okay," Buffy confirmed thinking, -Thanks for saving my butt, Lexa.-

"Well, good, if you need a nice, soft cushion to cry on, my breasts are at your service," Lexa said with a grin, groping her own breasts for a moment. Willow looked shocked, and Buffy just annoyed. "Just kidding, but if I can do anything to help, I'm there for my new and my cousin's old friends," she told them smiling. The three girls started walking again, and Lexa asked, "Have you guys figured out yet what the chicken is made of?"

"Nope," Buffy answered with a smile, "but whatever it is, it isn't chicken."

"Yeah, I'm afraid to put it under a microscope," Willow added, hugging a few books and some notebooks to her chest.

"I figured as much, remind me not to take more of it," Lexa commented with a face full of distaste.

"Will do," Buffy said with a smile, happy that things worked out, not noticing Lexa hanging back just a little. The brunette suddenly opened a janitorial closet, and pulled out a long chain. Instantly she ducked and slit a large pre-made loop underneath Buffy's right foot, who stepped in it, and looked down surprised a the rattling sound. Her left foot almost automatically moved forward, and right on time - before Buffy could get over her puzzlement - Lexa yanked the loop up, capturing both of Buffy's feet, and then pulled forward closing the loop. "Hey!" Buffy exclaimed, as Lexa already moved forward holding the other end in hand, and threw it over an overhead beam. She grabbed the chain again and ran in the opposite direction. "Whoa! Hey!" Buffy screamed in shock as she felt herself being lifted off the ground and twisted upside down. "What are you doing!?"

Lexa grinned and tied the chain around a heating element. Then walked to the dangling Buffy and pulled out a short chain. With Buffy still in a state of shock, she wrapped the shorter chain around Buffy's wrists and around Buffy's hands - which she placed flat against each other - and tied it shut. There Buffy hung, her face about one sixty centimeters above the ground, looking around in complete shock. "What!? What!?" Buffy muttered, slowly starting to understand.

"Sorry, Buffy, but when Xander asks something of me, seeing as he saved me from his father, I have to do it," Lexa said with a huge grin, and Willow next to her smiled too. "Oh, before I forget; Xander wanted me to give you a message: 'Sorry, Buff, but I'm a man of my word.' I hope it means something to you, because to _/me/_ it certainly doesn't."

Buffy blinked several times, and wiggled, and that's about all she could do, making her swing back and forth more. "Okay, funny, now untie me!" Buffy said in a growing panic, starting to get embarrassed. Lexa shook her head. "Willow!" Buffy pleaded.

"Sorry, Buffy, but I got hung upside down because you failed to do something, now you get to hang upside down because _/I/_ fail to do something. It's only fair," Willow told with a wide smile to the wiggling and swinging Buffy who looked incredulously at her insecure friend usually always there for her. "It took some time convincing me, Buffy, but Xander's right, you need punishment, and once I was convinced, I realized this isn't quite _/my/_ punishment, just Xander's."

"Huh? What?" Buffy asked, and looked with confusion as Willow pulled out lipstick and turned it out: bright red. "Hey! What are you doing!? Willow!"

"Now, Buffy," Willow admonished as she took a resolute step forward, "Unless you want to look like a smeared-out prostitute, I suggest you hold still."

Willow dipped down, and while smiling, calmly brought the lipstick to Buffy's lips. "Willow, you can't be serious! Stop this! Let me go!" Buffy said with mortification. When the Slayer saw that Willow casually continued to move the lipstick forward, she chose to play it safe and open her mouth a little holding still. She felt Lexa grab her body to keep her completely still, and a moment later felt the lipstick being thickly applied.

After a few moments Willow straightened back up, and made a rolling gesture with her lips to Buffy. Resigning, Buffy did just that and then Willow brought a handkerchief and held it between Buffy's lips, who tapped the fabric a few times. Willow stood back up straight again, and grinned, saying, "Perfect for kissing." Buffy looked confused. "Now the finishing touch," Willow said and pulled a piece of paper from one of her notebooks, and then planted it on Buffy's chest. As Buffy pulled her torso so she could read what was on the paper Willow picked her pile of books back up.

"'Kiss me'?" Buffy read astonished.

"Have fun, Buff," Lexa said with a big grin.

"Yeah, lots," Willow said and then the two wrapped arms around their waists, and walked away, giggling like little girls.

"Hey! You can't let me hang here! Willow! Lexa! I get it already, I was really bad! Guys?" Buffy yelled out after them, as she looked around wiggling again, making her swing, she just caught Lexa give her a wave, and then Buffy slowly became aware of the slowly growing crowd of smiling students around her. "Hey, one of you tie me loose will ya? Hello?" Buffy was blushing brightly with shame now, as well as the blood rushing to her head in her upside down position. "Come on?"

"No way," one guy said with a huge grin. "This is way too much fun. Besides, I'm never going to get between someone's payback."

Buffy glared at him and he took a step back. "God, what a pathetic loser," a hated familiar voice said, and Buffy saw Cordelia come out of the crowd. "Look at you, hung out to dry by your own geek friends, all mounted up for kissing and still no guy wants to kiss you."

"Cordelia! Get me down from here, please!" Buffy pleaded desperately.

Cordelia sighed theatrically, and then said a drawn out, "Fine." Everyone in the growing crowd of laughing students stopped laughing and looked astonished at the queen bitch. "Don't let it ever be said I don't have heart!" Cordelia proclaimed loudly and moved toward Buffy, who smiled in relief. Just before the Queen of Sunnydale High reached Buffy a theatrical frown played across her features and then she looked down at Buffy's face and said, "Wait, didn't you call me 'moron'?"

"I'm really, really, really sorry!" Buffy tried desperately, getting woozy from the swinging back and forth.

"So am I, you just shouldn't have said that," Cordelia said and then turned and walked away, snickering. The crowd of watchers started laughing again to Buffy's grater shame.

Another girl freed herself from the crowd, and Buffy looked with fear at the blonde. There was absolutely no connection with her she could hope fore. "Look at that. Buffy Summers strung up like a . . . a . . . whatever," Harmony said, making Buffy groan. "Now, what could I do?" Harmony said, tapping her chin.

"Harmony," Buffy whimpered trying for a warning tone.

"I know!" the blonde said, and casually pushed the Slayer making her swing back and forth wilder.

"Aargh!" Buffy screamed out and Harmony laughed walking away.

"I gotta get me some of this," an unfamiliar voice said. She felt herself being steadied and looked into a boy's face filled with pimples that had to be at least a year younger than her.

-Oh, no!- she thought in horror. The boy grinned wildly, and then dipped down, landing a big smacker on her lips, which she desperately kept closed. "MMMmmhh!!" Buffy moaned out in disgust.

The boy straightened up as Buffy spit out, and he said grinning widely, "Wow." He then pushed her, leaving her to swing around again, and he left.

-XANDER HARRIS!! I'M GOING TO GET YOU FOR THIS!!- Buffy screamed out in her mind under more laughter from the crowd of students.


	5. part 5

Buffy swung back and forth on the chain, grumbling unintelligible expletives. Everyone had left her already, the novelty gone.

"Had fun?" a familiar voice asked.

Buffy opened her eyes, and saw Xander casually leaning against a wall. She growled, "Xander Harris, wipe that smile of your face, and GET ME DOWN FROM HERE!!"

"Perhaps you haven't hung there long enough?" Xander wondered, unable to take the huge grin off his face.

Buffy growled and then composed herself. "Xander, would you please let me down?"

"Sure," he said, and walked over to where the chain was attached. "You know I really like the bright red lips." Buffy growled. "No, I mean it, it looks really good on you. But I hope you do understand why I _/had/_ to do this apart from keeping my word. I want you to understand this Buffy," Xander said, finished untying the chains and slowly lowering Buffy to the floor. Xander started untying her ankles as he continued, "just because you're the Slayer, and you're given some extra strength and speed and healing, doesn't mean you're superior to the rest of us. We're not going to go 'All hail, Buffy' because of that. We're your friends, not your pets, and that means we tell you the truth no matter how harsh it is, and we deserve to be treated with respect, got that?"

"Got it," Buffy said, as Xander finished untying her hands. She pulled the note off her chest, and crumpled it angrily. She looked up and said, "But that doesn't mean I'm not going to pay you back!" She readied a fist.

Xander backed away, waved his hands and said, "Hey, just normal guy here, you have super powers. You can't hit me."

Buffy looked at him for a moment, and then her eyes narrowed saying, "You kicked my butt, remember?"

"Oh, right," Xander said, and then smiled nervously. With roar Buffy threw the punch and Xander twisted aside. "You'll have to catch me first though," he said and ran away.

"AAH!" Buffy screamed and ran after him. "Get back here, Xander Harris!!"

"Oooh, I'm so scared!" Xander yelled looking backward. He rounded a corner, and disappeared into the girls' bathroom.

Buffy blasted past the door and looked around. Four stalls, but no Xander. She quickly ducked and looked underneath the stalls, only two pairs of feet, both women judging from the shoes. Buffy opened the first door: nobody. Quickly she went to the last stall, which had two feed. She jumped, grabbed the top of the door and pulled herself up, looking down into it. "AAH! What the hell are you doing! Lesbian pervert!" a girl screamed.

"Sorry, sorry! Just looking for a guy!" Buffy apologized letting herself drop.

"TRY THE MEN'S BATHROOM!!!" the girl screeched.

"_/Sorry/_!" Buffy exclaimed and then went to the third stall. Rapidly she opened it: again nobody. She backed away, looking at the remaining stall and wondering if she should. She blinked as she heard the toilet being flushed. Going into a battle stance she watched the door being opened . . . and out came Lexa.

"Buffy," she greeted. "I thought I recognized a voice. Xander let you down, huh?"

Buffy narrowed her eyes at Lexa, and quickly jumped past her, threw the door wide open and looked inside: nobody. "What are you doing?" Lexa asked confused.

Buffy twisted around, face grimaced in anger, and she hissed, "Payback! Where is he!? You're his cousin, you helped him get away!"

"I did no such thing, but if Xander went in here, the only way out is through the window," Lexa said calmly, pointing at said window.

"DAMN!" Buffy exclaimed, and went to the window. She opened it, and then jumped through. After some wiggling she passed through, completely missing the fact that Xander couldn't possibly fit through the window and then looked around. Left or right? Finally she decided on right and ran, yelling, "XANDER! No sense hiding!"

Lexa smiled, turned on the hot water faucet, and went back into the stall. A few moments later she came back out in men's closing. She watched the girl from the fourth stall finish cleaning her hands and walk away. Lexa splashed some of the hot water on her face, and Xander looked in the mirror with a big grin, "Way too easy." He then casually walked out the bathroom.

He walked aimlessly, calculated how much time he still had left before lunch break was over, and wondered if he should cut class. Finally he decided to go look up Willow, and see if she could appeal to his conscience. "XANDER!" he heard a scream.

"Ah, shit," Xander said and ran away again, Buffy hot on his tail. "If it works once," he murmured with a grin. He made several twists and turns, and ran up some stairs to the second floor.

Buffy was saw Xander go up the stairs, and she followed him moments later. The stairs went up to halfway, there was a platform, and then the stairs went up the other way to the next floor. Buffy rounded the flat corner and then bounded up the stairs, only to bump into Lexa. This time Xander had no time to change clothing, so she was still in jeans and top. Her breasts were too big for the tight fitting male top, so her upper buttons were open showing off her cleavage. She looked with large, clueless eyes at the Slayer. "Where did he go?! Where did he go!?" Buffy asked rapidly, running in place, looking left and right down the corridor and forward into another.

"Uh, someone ran that way," Lexa pointed to Buffy's left, behind her. "But he was too fast to tell if it was Xander."

"Thanks!" Buffy said and ran off after Xander.

Lexa grinned and disappeared back into the janitorial closet. A moment later Xander came back out. "I said it before, and I say it again: way too easy," he said with another big grin and casually went back down the stairs.

Buffy reached the end of the corridor, and looked at another pair of stairs. Up to the third floor, or down. Down. She ran down the stairs and wondered how the hell Xander had managed to give her the slip - again! "Xander, you little," Buffy hissed, determined to hang him upside down as well, or some other creative payback.

Once downstairs she looked around. What way now? With a grunt she just picked and ran, looking around startled looking students, and dismissing them when they weren't Xander. After a few moments of running at top speed she slowed down, and asked one student she knew was in their class, "Have you seen, Xander?"

"Uh, yeah, he was just that away," he said, pointing down the corridor toward the lunch room. With growl Buffy sped off again, and yep, soon she saw him walking there, talking to a girl. At the last minute he noticed the speeding along bull, and bolted. Buffy ran after him, slowly catching up. Oh, this time he was _/not/_ getting away. Xander went around a corner and so went she: no Xander. "What? How does he keep doing this!?" Buffy hissed out in frustration, looking around.

A door opened and Lexa stepped out. She looked over, and seemed surprised to see Buffy. "Oh, Buffy, you again," she said.

"Where's Xander!? Where is he!?" Buffy hissed out at her.

Lexa pointed down the hall, and said, "Second classroom."

Buffy nodded, thinking, -Right!- She took several steps, reaching Lexa, and stopped. She turned right, so she was facing the raven-haired girl, and narrowed her yes at her. Lexa seemed startled. "Lexa," Buffy said slowly, dangerously. "Three times Xander gave me the slip, three times you're there, you're helping him."

"No, I'm not," Lexa said, shaking her head.

"And _/you/_ are the one who did the actually hanging upside down of me," Buffy said slowly, smiling she could get payback. Lexa swallowed visibly. "RAAH!" Buffy screamed throwing the punch. Lexa jumped, flipped over Buffy with an impressive screw and landed behind the Slayer. Buffy's fist in the mean time collided with the wall instead of body. Buffy looked shocked at the unharmed wall. Buffy was angry, but she wouldn't put someone in a hospital, so she had kept the power in her arm back. She felt a tap on her shoulder, and she looked around.

A brightly smiling Lexa said, "You need anger management classes."

"Manage this!" Buffy screamed and threw a punch. Lexa grabbed the side of Buffy's arm and twisted aside of the punch, pulling the Slayer along until she crashed into the wall. She watched as Lexa then ran away. She quickly ran after her, screaming, "LEXA!! GET BACK HERE!! I'M GONNA GET YOU TOO!!"

-Oh, man,- Xander thought looking back as Buffy came after her. -Then again, this could be fun.- Grinning she ran out the school, jumped in a tree, ran to the edge of the branch and jumped smoothly up on top of the school. Buffy came out of the school and just managed to see Lexa jump from the tree to the roof, and looked up at her. Xander grinned from his position, and called, "Hey, Buffy! You can't get to me from there."

Buffy grimaced, hesitating. They would all see her do the amazing feet, then again the students had already seen Lexa do it. "You think so, huh?!" Buffy yelled up and with a running start jumped into the tree, and from there to the roof.

Lexa swallowed at the grinning Buffy and then turned around and ran. They jumped down the other side.

Willow blinked. She stood in front of the school and had watched the spectacle of Lexa jumping into tree, and from there to the roof, and then Buffy going after her. "Whoa," Willow muttered with revelation. "Lexa is the girl that beat the six vampires. Hmm."

"XANDER!" Buffy's scream was heard and Xander came running out the school followed by Buffy. They quickly disappeared around the corner again. Willow blinked, and then smiled. "LEXA!" Buffy yelled, and from the same corner Lexa appeared, Buffy hot on her heals. They disappeared back into the school. Willow still smiled looking. "XANDER!" Buffy's scream sounded again, and Xander appeared from the other side of the building, Buffy right behind. He went back into through the main entrance. "LEXA!" Buffy's yell sounded, and Lexa came from the other direction, once again disappearing into the building, Buffy behind her. A few others looked mildly amused, but then went on with their business. Willow kept looking. "XANDER!" Buffy screamed. Willow looked up, following the yell and watched Xander appear on the roof. He simply jumped down, and ran back into the school through the main entrance. Buffy arrived right after him, jumping down as well.

"Something odd is going on," Willow said with a frown, as Lexa with Buffy right after her came around the left corner.

"Exactly when _/isn't/_ there something odd going on around here?" a bitchy voice asked. Willow looked to her left and saw Cordelia stand there with her arms folded across her ample chest.

"Xander!" Buffy's voice sounded, running after Xander, who this time simply ran around the school instead of going back inside.

"Ok, something odd_/er/_ is going on," Willow said, making Cordelia look at her. Lexa came out the main entrance of the school, look left and right, then went left, Buffy right after her. "I just can't quite put my finger on what."

Cordelia snorted, and said, "Well, bookworm, don't you think you should break up your friends, they might _/miss/_ class, oh, the horror! Whatever will we do then!?" Cordelia then chuckled and walked to the school.

Willow watched her go, and then said softly, "Bitch." She was right though, and so Willow went into the school. It didn't take long before the shouts led her to Buffy and Xander standing across from each other. "Too slow, huh, Buffy?" Xander asked with a smile.

Buffy growled, and looked around. She saw a bucket standing their. She rapidly went over and picked it up. Then she threw it at Xander. Xander's eyes widened and twisted aside, but too slow. The water splashed all over his arm. Xander looked at his arm, and the smoke coming from the pool of _/hot/_ water - very _/hot/_ water. "Yowch!!" Xander screamed out shaking his arm. "Have you lost your mind, Buffy. That could have really hurt me!"

Buffy was about to answer when a cleaning lady stepped in alarm out of the door next to which the bucket stood. She took in the sight, and then she yelled, "VANDALS! LOOK, AND I GET TO CLEAN IT UP NO DOUBT!" Buffy and Xander looked in fear at the angry woman and quickly ran away. A few turns later, the two leaned back against a wall, breathing hard.

"You two." Buffy and Xander looked up, and was relieved when they saw Willow stepping toward them smiling. Buffy and Xander looked at each other then, and chuckled at the close call. "Lunch break is over, we need to get to class," Willow said with a smile.

Buffy's smile broke into a grimace, and said, "I still haven't . . ."

"Leave it be, Buffy. You got what you deserved, and you know it," Willow said walking closer to her friends. "Besides, are you going to punch me out too for the lips? You'd put me in a hospital. So please just get over it, Buffy." Buffy looked down. "Now come on, you guys. You're friends, apologize, hugs, and let's go." Xander and Buffy looked at each other, and murmured an apology at each other. "Hugs," Willow said. Xander and Buffy looked at Willow, then at each other, and then gave each other a hug.

"Hugs?" Willow looked over and saw Cordelia. The Queen bitch shook her head, and then told Willow, "You are such a loser, Rosenberg. And you two even more for actually doing it." She then walked off, having three pairs of glaring eyes in her back.

"Why didn't you hang her out to dry?" Buffy almost growled.

"I know, I'm really wondering what I was thinking," Xander agreed with her.

Willow and Buffy stood nervously in front of the door of Xander's apartment. They were invited, they had both bought a housewarming gift, and were now wondering what they'd find. The building was tall, and multiple apartments were in it. On one side it had a view of the beach that was only a throwing distance away. Willow and Buffy were almost jealous thinking of the possibilities. The pushed the button that read 'A. L. Harris' and waited.

#I'm coming out to lead you in, hold on,# Xander's voice came from a speaker.

A few moments later Xander's frame appeared behind the glass in the door. Another moment later the door opened, and Xander said, "Come in." The two girls did, entering the apartment complex. "It's this way," Xander said with a smile, walking deeper into the building. He moved around a corner toward the right, immediately there was another corner to the left. There was a door to the right, and a door straight on, which was a door on the right side of the new corner to the left. Xander walked straight forward and opened the door straight on. Willow and Buffy looked at each other, remembering the outside of the building and making a quick imagination. "Come on into the Harris Palace," Xander said and beckoned them on.

Willow and Buffy entered, and Xander closed the door. The girls looked around in amazement, and both sets of eyes immediately latched on the biggest feature. "Oh, my!" Buffy exclaimed as both girls ran across the apartment to the glass door behind which was a balcony, and behind that the beach. The turned around to look at Xander, who grinned. "Let's start with the beginning, shall we?" he asked with a smile, and point to his left to the kitchen corner. "The kitchen," he announced, and Buffy and Willow looked at the beautiful kitchen, separated from the rest of the apartment by a quarter circle counter. Xander walked past it to the corner, which was a bit deeper into the apartment. He opened the door in it, and said, "Bathroom." Willow and Buffy came over to look, finding a rectangular room, which had a toilet and a shower, all tiled in blue. Xander then walked over to the other side of the corner where there was another door and he opened it. "The bedroom, where I will undoubtedly receive many lady friends," Xander said with a grin.

"Xander," Buffy admonished as both girls stepped inside to look around. The door was in the corner, and the bedroom was rectangular going further to the right. A double bed was in the middle, brown closet and night stand in the back. A clothes rack was in the far left corner. A small tv was in the middle of the bed.

"What? To have them pick what I wear of course," he joked innocently, neither girl accepted that, and just frowned at him. "Don't believe me, then.," he said, and lead them back out. He walked along the wall, past a small cupboard, and opened a final door. "And the final separate room: the gym," Xander said with a smile, and the two girls walked inside.

Buffy's eyes gleamed when she looked inside it; a sparring mat, several different weight-based, workout machines, and several training poles and similar equipment to what she had destroyed two days earlier. Finally the room had different bladed weapons and other martial arts weapons hanging on the wall. Willow just looked, Buffy's expression fueled by Slayer instincts said, 'He has his own piece of heaven.'

"All right, guys, finally the living room," Xander said, presenting the living room. Willow and Buffy had seen it already of course, but they had had more eyes for the balcony. Willow and Buffy took in the chair, and two couches, all in dark-green leather. The room had a light beige carpet. A good size televison was on a standard with an old VCR underneath, and a low table in the middle. An old radio was next to the tv, and further behind the far couch was a tall smaller eating table, surrounded by chairs. "I'm saving up for a DVD player, I hear they're supposed to be the next thing."

"Damn cool, Xan," Buffy said looking around.

"Yeah, I want to emancipate too. Where does Lexa sleep?" Willow said looking around.

Xander turned to them and answered, "In a sleeping bag on a mattress we put away every morning, I'm still working on something better, she really should have her own bed."

"Where is she anyway?" Buffy asked, walking over to the three-person couch and sat on it, testing it out. It wasn't new, she could tell that, but it was damn neat still.

"She met some hot girl this afternoon and went on a date with her, I doubt I'll see her back before midnight," Xander answered with a smile.

"Well, great, Xan, congratulations," Willow said, shaking his head and giving him a hug. Then she handed her present over. Buffy got up, congratulated and hugged him also and equally gave him her present.

Xander placed the presents on the table and said, "Take a seat, and let me get you ladies something to drink first, then I'll open the presents."

Buffy and Willow agreed to that, both enjoying being called 'ladies', and sat down on the couch. Willow ordered an orange juice, and Buffy cola. Xander grinned and went to get their drinks for them.

Author's notes: Next week, the revelation of Xander's surprise / secret, and the arrival of an amazon and her mother. What could they possibly want? 


	6. part 6

Buffy and Willow walked over school grounds. They needed to get to class, and Willow was deep in thought. "Have you noticed something odd about Xander and Lexa?" she asked her blonde friend.

Buffy looked at her, and asked, "Apart from them being evil?" Willow looked at the blonde who shrugged pitifully, saying, "You weren't the one hanging from the ceiling."

"That's not what I meant," Willow said, gathering her thoughts. "Have you ever seen both of them together?"

"Plenty of times," Buffy hissed in anger remembering her chase match where the two of them were playing her like a piano.

Willow shook her head, making an educated guess, and added, "No, in the exact same room, at the exact same time. Have you ever seen Xander _/and/_ Lexa? Talking to each other for example."

Buffy frowned as she thought back. "No, I don't think I have. Why? You think they are one and the same or something?"

Willow shrugged, and said, "Well, Xander leaves, Lexa arrives. Xander stays home, Lexa comes with us to the bronze. We go over to their apartment and Lexa is out, and you chasing them yesterday, I not once saw either of them together. Xander goes to China, gets especially trained by some super martial artists, and Lexa never having been there has the same strength and speed and skill as Xander. I'm just saying . . ."

"But Willow, she's a girl, he's a guy, there's no way he can be in disguise," Buffy said in disbelief. "This isn't like Clark Kent putting on some glasses. I can tell a guy in a dress from an actual girl, you know."

"Yesterday they were wearing the same clothes," Willow pointed out, making Buffy think back. "And I wasn't thinking disguise, more like some kind of magical illusion. Glamour, didn't Giles call it that?"

Buffy nodded, and then added, "But Lexa is a bit shorter than Xander. I don't think a glamour can do that, I thought Jenny muttered something about skintight overlay? Besides, you were dancing with her, head against her if I remember correct; were her breasts non-existent? Just light? Or round fruits?"

Willow blushed, remembering resting her head against the very prominent fleshy cushions, and they were certainly no lemons or something like that. "Yeah, I guess you're right," Willow muttered looking down thinking, and then added, "Perhaps I should ask Giles or Jenny if it could be done."

"You know, Willow, you're paranoid, and _/I've/_ got more to fear from them. You don't think they'll try to hang me upside down again, do you?" Buffy asked embarrassed when she remembered her time being strung up.

"Nah, payback delivered, apologies and hugs exchanged, no worries," Willow told her friend.

Willow was done with her computer class, but instead of leaving she went over to the desk and waited for the last student to leave the classroom before talking to Jenny. "Uh, miss Calendar . . ." Willow started nervously.

Jenny looked up and said, "Willow, you can call me 'Jenny'."

"Uh, Jenny," Willow said nervously, "You're this Techno Pagan, right? You know some stuff about magic?"

"Uh, yes, why do you ask?" Jenny asked.

Willow fidgeted and brought up her courage, then asked, "I wanted to know, is there a magic that would allow a boy to look and feel - to someone else - like a girl, and then switch back a moment later, and then switch again?"

Jenny regarded Willow for a few moments, contemplating, then asked, "Why? Do _/you/_ want to do that? Do you want to learn magic?"

"No-no-no-no," Willow quickly answered, shaking her hands in innocence. "I just suspect a guy I know from doing that; I just wanted to know if it was possible . . . And would you? Teach me that is?" Willow added the later in a little excited afterthought.

Jenny regarded Willow, and asked, "Feel?"

"Breasts," Willow answered.

Jenny blinked at that and then thought, "Well, making an illusion so powerful you can feel it . . . I haven't heard of such a thing, but I _/do/_ know that if it were possible it would mean serious, serious magic. The kind requiring so much power and skill that takes years, if not decades to master. So just a 'guy' going to school here wouldn't be able to do something like that."

"Oh," Willow said a bit perturbed, guessing she was wrong about Xander and Lexa after all.

"As for teaching you magic, I don't know, you've hacked your way into computers," Jenny thought deeply.

Willow looked at Jenny with an embarrassed look, and said, "But you know, now that I think about it, it would be good to be able to set a gang member on PCP on fire from across a graveyard."

Jenny nodded thoughtfully, and said, "Usually it takes quite a while before one has that kind of power and skill that the gang member is hit not the friends fighting him." Jenny sighed, and then added, "Willow, using magic is not a toy. You are really overboard on your hacking for recreational purposes not for the greater good. That would have to stop first, and I would have to teach you a great deal about the effects of magic, side effects of magic, what you can and can't do with it. This requires a huge amount of teaching on what people shouldn't be doing with it. I will have to teach you philosophies behind magic, the threefold rule. This isn't going to be easy. Giles would have to agree on it. And before I even consider teaching you actual magic you'll have to prove to me you've learned how dangerous magic can be, and that you can't just play with it."

Willow nodded, and then said, "I'll learn, I promise I won't treat it as some 'cool' fashion statement or something."

Jenny nodded and then said, "Go on, I think your friends are waiting, I have to think about this." Willow nodded, eager for more knowledge and then left the room.

Later that afternoon after school Xander, Willow and Buffy were in the library. Buffy was going to train hard, with her determination to defeat Xander. Xander was going to train with Willow, but first Xander decided it was time to show them their surprise. He had already prepared two plastic water bottles, one filled with hot water the other with cold. Giles was behind the counter sipping a tea readying himself for the training.

"Guys, before we go train very hard, the surprise has arrived," Xander said with a huge grin.

"Really? Really? Really?" Willow jumped up in excitement, looking left and right, and then slumped. "Where?"

"Here," Xander said indicating the plastic bottles he put on the table.

Buffy and Willow looked at the water bottles and the water inside, and looked up at him. "Water? Will this water keep our skins young, fresh and tight or something?" Buffy remarked in confusion.

"Surprise? Miracle water? What?" Cordelia's voice sounded and she barged into the library. They all looked at her. "I heard you! Where's the miracle skin care?" Everyone narrowed their eyes at her but Giles. "Show me, damn it!"

"There's no miracle skin care, Cordelia," Xander said in irritation.

"I heard you!" Cordelia repeated coming down the few steps to the lower part of the library.

Xander grimaced. "Nope! Watch," Xander said with a grin, turning back around to face Willow and Buffy. He took the bottles, then walked away from them, behind the table and Giles started paying attention, intrigued. Xander unscrewed the bottle revealing a squeeze trigger. "Cold water," Xander said, and squeezed the bottle spraying some water in his face. "Hi, guys!" Lexa waved with a huge grin, her breasts on display in the tight shirt. Willow and Buffy's eyes widened. Cordelia's jaw dropped. Giles sputtered, dropped his cup of tea, and then it shattered on the ground. "Warm water!" Lexa said, and splashed that in her face. She grew a bit, and became male. "Yo, I'm back!" Xander said with a huge grin at the shocked girls. "Cold water," Xander said again, showing Lexa. "Warm water," and Xander was back once again.

Everyone looked at him silently, until Willow regained her wits first. "I _/knew/_ it!" she yelled in triumph. "Didn't I tell you! Didn't I tell you, Buffy!?" Buffy nodded with her jaw still dropped.

Cordelia boiled on the inside. Not only had 'loser' Xander gotten a sudden hotness upgrade, that annoyed her to no end, for since when did a prom queen consider a geek 'hot', but the little bastard was also the girl that had been making her life miserable for the past few days. Everywhere she went it was 'Lexa this,' and 'Lexa that.'

Buffy exploded first. "YOU BASTARD!" she screamed jumping forward intending to clog Xander one, but he bent back and she missed.

"Hey! What the hell was that for?" Xander said in shock, avoiding another blow.

"Uhm, watch the books!" Giles said as she watched Buffy trying to hit Xander who had now jumped up on top of the railing very close to the precious books.

"You bastard! You spied on us! I can't come, but Lexa can, 'all girls night out'! AAH!!" Buffy screamed out in rage and frustration, still not able to land a hit on Xander who kept deftly avoiding her hits. By now they had made a full circle with the others watching. "You had us tell you which guys we thought was hot, you, you . . ." Buffy paused for a moment as she felt suddenly very embarrassed about basically telling Xander she thought he was pretty hot. That boosted her rage onward and she swung fists again, that Xander either avoided or pushed them aside. Xander blocked a punch, making him squeeze the bottle a bit, and cold water splashed in Buffy's face. Her eyes flashed in rage fighting onward.

"Buffy, please! It wasn't like that! I just wanted to know what an actual all girls night out is like. It wasn't for spying, I'm one half girl, I just wanted to enjoy girls amongst each other without whole 'he's a guy' awkwardness," Xander tried to desperately explain to the super powered girl that had completely lost it. "Willow, help?"

"Willow, don't listen to him! He weaseled out of you you've got a crush on him, making you look like a fool! He needs to pay, help me out, together we can get him!" Buffy screamed, making Willow look shocked.

Giles' eyes widened, just as the library doors opened admitting Jenny Calendar who looked surprised at the scene and from Willow to Xander. Cordelia also looked at Willow. The redhead shrank in on herself, with all the eyes on her, and the look in Cordelia's eyes that couldn't bode well.

"Oh, real smart, Buf. Who's the one making her look like a fool, huh? Maybe you should have gotten a megaphone to be certain _/Europe/_ heard you," Xander remarked sarcastically to a momentarily paused Slayer who slowly realized her goof, which of course only got her more angry and started up again.

As the Slayer and the cursed boy continued their dance of violence, Willow looked down at the ground blushing, feeling ashamed of herself, she could already hear Cordelia's biting remark, 'Such a loser, can't even make a fellow geek interested in her', or some such. It was all Xander's fault, and Buffy's just now, but if Xander hadn't played them as Lexa . . . Lexa . . . Willow blinked, remembering pressing against the sexy body of Xander's girl form, remembering how he got her to dance, have guys dance around her. Buffy's compliment after that, and how that and Xander's further encouraging got her to actually stand up for herself and give Buffy a little bit of well deserved payback for being such a bitch the day earlier. "BUFFY, STOP IT!" she suddenly screamed, fed up.

Buffy paused, "But . . ."

"Xander Harris, you better explain yourself this very instant, or I'll swear to god, you'll get a payback that won't end till the fourth millennium," Willow snarled, slowing the whole library down.

Xander carefully got off of the railing he had found himself on, warily eyeing Buffy. "Ok, how to explain this," Xander muttered, wondering why nobody had asked yet how he got this.

"Star at the beginning, most notably how you got this . . . condition?" Giles suggested highly intrigued.

"What condition?" Jenny asked confused.

"This," Cordelia muttered grabbing the bottle in Xander's hands since he was close by and sprayed him with cold water.

"Hi!" Lexa greeted Jenny Calender in a very girly matter.

"Is that an illusion?" Jenny asked remembering the conversation with Willow.

Xander shook his head while grinning sheepishly, and said, "I'm a girl, one hundred percent." Jenny looked astounded.

"Warm water changes him back," Buffy muttered gruffly folding her arms across her chest and eyeing Xander with cold anger.

"Like so," Lexa said, spraying himself with hot water. A few moments later she was Xander again.

Everyone looked expectantly at Xander, and he started talking, "Ok, beginning. You guys know how I got sold to the Chinese mob to be a sex slave, right? Right. Anyway I escaped, and fled as best as I could. Eventually I came across . . .

O

Xander ran across the grass, breathing heavily. Gunshots went off, and dirt and grass were sent upward whenever a bullet struck the ground nearby him. The satin male sex slave outfit he wore was built to show off his body, but not build to run in, making this even more difficult. He stumbled halfway the small incline, but managed to keep going. Fear and his heartbeat rang in his ears along with the grunts of the mob men chasing him. His eyes widened, for there he saw the greatest sight he could ever have hoped for, providing of course they didn't belong to the mob either. One boy his age, and an older man, both were wearing a white gi and were high in the air. They met and exchanged blows, and the man went down. Xander reached the top of the incline, after which it went almost straight down. Right at the end of the decline a pond was visible. There were more ponds, small pieces of ground in between. Sticks, seemingly of bamboo or a similar large sturdy grass were spread around the field with ponds and springs. There was a third pudgy man in some kind of uniform speaking Chinese.

The relief that there were people that might be able to help him, did by no means limit the fear that these people might simply get shot. It did however make him miss a rather, good-sized rock, and he hooked his right foot behind it. Xander's eyes widened and he keeled over, rolling down the decline, making him miss the panda jumping from the pool the older man had just fallen into. The panda landed on one of the grass sticks with one foot, as the boy was standing on one equally. "What's going on!?" the boy yelled in Japanese when he saw the panda. The guide explained, much to the boy's shock.

The panda grunted and jumped. The boy jumped too, but still too startled he was unable to properly block or parry the panda's strikes and so he was sent flying to another pool, at the far edge in the corder of the field of springs. The boy smashed into it as the guide yelled warnings in Japanese, and only then noticing the other figure rolling down the decline just by the same pool. "Oh, no! Not you too! Hold!" the guide yelled in further Japanese, but Xander was too tired, rolling too fast, and unable to understand Japanese to do anything about it. A moment after the first boy splashed into the spring, Xander splashed into the same.

The guide came over and tried to explain as a redheaded girl in a gi rose from the water, but before he could speak a girl Xander appeared from the water and screamed desperately, pointing up to the decline he came rolling down from, "Mob! Me sex slave! HELP!!"

The panda let out a grumble and looked over, the redhead too. The guide looked shock for a moment and then looked up too as the first three of ten men appeared at the top, guns in hand. They spoke in Chinese, "Where did he go!?"

Xander couldn't understand him, nor could he understand the Panda's grunts or the boy's Japanese exclaim, "You bastards dare defile such a beautiful girl! You will pay!" The panda's grunts had actually a similar meaning. The panda and boy jumped, up and up easily landing on the rather tall incline with one bound, startling the mob thugs.

"Whoa, just like Buffy," Xander muttered in surprise. The panda bashed aside one mob guy, and twisted the barrel of the other's gun, after which he bashed that one as well. More mob guys showed up as the boy now girl bashed aside one of his own opponents, and kicked another meters away groaning in pain. The boy then twisted a gun arm of another mob guy and snapped it over his shoulder, making the thug scream in pain. The fight was over not much later, having ten mob guys lying unconscious in multiple places, one of them floating around in a pond as a turtle.

Ranma - the redhead girl, once boy - came down the incline, the panda following him. "Hello, gull, you allight?" she asked looking at Xander.

"What!?" Xander exclaimed in anger pulling himself out of the water. "You dare call me a girly man!? I have you know was outnumbered ten to one and they had guns, and that's not counting the rest of them!"

"Gulls! Save the lives, and they shout at you! Unglateful," Ranma complained, the panda nodded and made a agreeing sound.

"TAKE BACK ME BEING WIMP, OR ELSE, BITCH!!" Xander screamed in extreme anger.

"You question my manhood!?" Ranma raged right back, the two girls about ready to fight each other.

"No, no! Not understand!" the guide interrupted the two waving his hands frantically, then pointed at the pond they had fallen into. "Is Cursed Spring of Drowned Girl! Tragic tale of girl that drowned their fifteen-hundred years ago! Now all who fall in become a girl!"

Xander and Ranma took in the guide's frantic words, frowned, looked back at each other, and then looked down. Both had bulges where their shouldn't be any. Both their eyes widened and grabbed the sides of their tops, and pulled them open, seeing breasts. "AAAAAAHHH!!" both of them screamed out in shock.

O

"'With their "bear" hands,'" Willow recited a sentence from Xander's first letter. "That was a pun, not a spelling mistake." Xander grinned, nodding at Willow.

"The Cursed Springs of Jusenkyo," Giles said in revelation. "I knew 'Jusenkyo' sounded familiar. They are quite famous amongst the paranormal circles, I never looked into them though."

"So then what?" Buffy said suspiciously.

"Well, then we called the cops, but the place was primitive, Jusenkyo was in the middle of nowhere, no hardened roads. So they couldn't send a vehicle, and Genma - Ranma's father - offered take me back to Hong Kong. Somewhere along the line they decided they should train me, and they found I was really good at it," Xander explained, remembering. "Anyway, at first I was completely down at the whole 'cursed being a girl bit', especially with Ranma's complete Japanese martial artist honor and losing manhood spiel that brought my down along with him. Until that day we were with the Chinese Amazons; they were hot, damn hot. Anyway, you can understand I got . . . uh . . . worked up. Somewhere during our flight I turned into my girl self, and that night we slept somewhere, still . . . worked up. At first I was annoyed; I was, well, horny and no warm water around, until it occurred to me, that I didn't _/need/_ any warm water. After all, I still had a body that was obviously fully functional, not to mention a _/female/_ body, so I went exploring."

"Ex . . . ploring?" Willow muttered, and all the girls and one grown up woman nodded. Giles was furiously cleaning his glasses.

"The other word starts with an 'm'," Xander said with a huge grin.

They all looked shocked, and then Buffy exploded, "You can't do that! You pervert! You're a guy, you-you-you shouldn't be touching a girl's body like that!"

"I do believe, Buffy, that eventually doing the duty to the continuation of the human species, he is meant to do exactly that," Giles said with a serious face, still cleaning his glasses.

"You all know what I mean," Buffy spat out rapidly.

Xander smiled and said, "Well, it's my body, I get to do whatever the hell I want with it. Anyway, it was around then that I realized this wasn't a curse at all. I had been looking at this all wrong. How many guys and girls haven't wished to be able to know what's like to be the other gender for a short while. And look! Here I am! Cold water girl, warm water guy! This wasn't a curse; it's a blessing! I'm in the mood for a good, quick jerk-off I'm a guy, I'm in the mood for multiple orgasms I get some cold water and I go," Xander said with a huge smile.

With an audible snap Giles broke his glasses, which he was cleaning, and said, "Oh, dear." The other occupants of the room looked at Xander with wide eyes.

"I didn't say that last part out loud, did I?" Xander whimpered, scratching his head furiously. Willow took in Xander, remembered Lexa, remembered her head against his breasts, and latched onto those two words. She had a crush on Xander for a long time, and now she felt herself growing hot all over with very lewd images. She looked hungrily at Xander.

Across the library Jenny swallowed and turned away, looking into Giles eyes. Cordelia just in front of her looked at Xander in a completely new light. After all, how could a loser possibly be able to induce multiple orgasms in a girl? Subconsciously she licked her lips.

Buffy's jaw was dropped and then she practically broke down, wailing, "No way! That's so unfair! He's a guy! I'm a girl! Why can _/he/_ give himself multiple orgasms!? _/I/_ can't give myself multiple orgasms! The universe hates me!"

Everyone looked at her, Xander swallowed. Cordelia walked over to the distraught Slayer and slapped her across her left cheek, startling Buffy. She pulled her hand back, and slapped her with the back of the hand across her other cheek, then pulled back again. She slapped Buffy for a total of five times and then said tersely, "There's a _/hotguy/_ in this room that just told you he can induce _/multipleorgasms/_ in a _/girl/_ with _/just/_ his fingers, and _/that's/_ what you're thinking of!? The _/unfairness/_ of it!?" Buffy looked up at Cordelia in surprise, letting her words sink in deeper and deeper. Suddenly her eyes brightened and she bent to her left looking past Cordelia at Xander.

"Oh," she said, her eyes suddenly started to sparkle. "Ohhhhhhhhh."

"That's right!" Cordelia said in satisfaction, her assessment of Buffy had gone down sharply. "Ow!" Cordelia suddenly exclaimed and grabbed her right upper arm. Looking over she saw Willow still with the fist.

"Did you _/have/_ to point that out to her, you idiot!" Willow exclaimed angrily at Cordelia. Cordelia glared back, then suddenly her eyes widened and looked back at a still sparkly-eyed Buffy.

"Shit," she said, berating her own stupidity.

Xander took a few nervous steps back, then mustered his courage, and spoke, "Once I got back from China, I promised myself, I would be experimenting in other areas equally: what's it like to be a girl in a bar and guys try to pick you up, what's it like to be ogled by guys . . . what's it like to have girlfriends, as in girl buddies, which is where not telling right away came in." Xander paused and walked over to Buffy and Willow. "I didn't mean to hurt you guys, or spy on you, or get to know things I shouldn't be knowing, I had none of those intentions, I just wanted to know what it was like. You know that if I really wanted to deceive you I wouldn't have bothered showing you guys now. Can you forgive me?"

Willow looked at Xander, going over his words. What _/was/_ it like to be a guy? If she could turn into a guy at will, would she try and find out what it's like to be one in a similar manner? She knew that with her curious mind, she would. She slumped and said, "You're forgiven."

Xander then turned his best puppy dog eyes on Buffy, who folded her arms across her chest, but unable to remove the sparkling in her eyes as she took Xander in. Willow then place her arm around Xander's waist, laid her head on Xander's upper arm and added her own puppy dog eyes to the power landing on their friend. Buffy looked at them, grumbled, and realized that if she didn't forgive the big doofus she might lose the two best friends, actual friends she'd ever had. She nodded, but remained angry, eyes still sparkling. "Thanks, Buff," Xander said with a smile, swallowing nervously.

"Well, uh," Giles muttered trying to diffuse the situation as two friends gazes settled on Cordelia. "I have enough faith in you that you can start and perform your training without me, I need to get my glasses fixed. Right." Giles nodded and went to the exit, pulling Jenny along, and whispering, "Let's get out of that powder keg." Jenny looked back for a moment and then seeing the three girls half surrounding Xander she realized, Giles was right.

Xander swallowed, not quite knowing what to do with his two friends carefully appraising him and the Queen of Sunnydale High doing the same. "Uh, heh, okay, right, training. Willow, get in your workout clothes, so we can start your training," Xander said, scratching the back of his head.

"Of course, Xander," Willow said in a husky voice, or was Xander imagining that? "Come on, Buffy, let's change clothes in Giles' office." The two girls started going for the office.

Cordelia walked toward Xander, and stated, "You, Xander Harris, . . ." Her finger started at his chin and slowly slid down his neck down as she continued, ". . . will be mine." Xander's eyes widened and he swallowed as Cordelia's seductive finger stopped right above his heart. She gave him a sexy smile, then turn around and sashayed out the library. Xander's gaze followed her out the door, his jaw slack all the way.

Inside Giles' office Willow and Buffy started undressing, and Willow said sugary sweet, "Buffy, if you are my friend, you will keep your paws off of Xander." There, she'd mustered up the guts to say it. First time she had actually asked something substantial from a friend. But Xander had just become a prize she couldn't afford to miss out on, especially seeing some of the lewd images that had formed in her mind that she still had to analyze thoroughly, mixed with recent confidence boosting happenings she had no other choice but to do that. Buffy looked at her friend, and then let her shoulders slump, nodding.

Back in the main library, Xander muttered, "Oh, man, what did I get myself into now?"

A bar, somewhere outside of Sunnydale

The next day

The door to the dingy place, bikes parked all around it crashed open. In came a woman in her mid thirties. She wore very exotic clothing. Her big breasts were obvious, her muscular arms were obscured though. She had big green eyes, and her chestnut brown hair hung curly around her head. The counter inside was made of wood, and the whole bar was filled with demons and vampires and the like. The windows of the place was covered up. Most of the demons were in biker clothing. A lot of them had red eyes and there must have been at least fifty, that was biker demons alone, not counting the others and the vampires.

The woman calmly made a slight bow, straightened back up and said with a slight accent but otherwise impeccable English, "Nihau. My daughter and I are looking for a place called Sunnydale. We have business there. Unfortunately we have never been to this continent, and must have made a wrong turn somewhere. Does someone here know the way by any chance?"

The demons chuckled and laughed. One said, "Is your daughter as hot as you are? If so, you should bring her in."

"Yeah," another demon said getting up, and running a hand across the woman's ass and up her back, and as he circled her across her breasts, "that way we can have some fun before you go on your way."

"Then you know the way?" she asked calmly.

A vampire chuckled and said, "Sweety, no demon around here doesn't know the way to the Hellmouth. But you know, we require payment first, right guys?" The demons and vampires howled in approval.

"I see, I shall pay you with steel and wood then," the woman stated and the demons stopped their leching and laughing and looked dumbfounded. The woman rapidly smashed a finger in the bar and then in the wooden floor. A moment later both exploded, and demons screamed in pain as splinters and pieces of wood entered their bodies. Most vampires exploded almost immediately in the rain of wood. Another moment later she unsheathed two wicked looking swords, decapitating two demons in the same movement. She whirled around, five more demons dropped to the sandy ground beneath the destroyed floor screaming in pain. The woman casually balanced on the beams, and ran over to the non-destroyed parts, slicing demons left and right. Some attacked but were easily dispatched by the woman's superior reach with the razor-sharp swords. Not long after their leader fell and then the demons started panicking, removing any chance of them escaping alive, killing demons went with even greater ease. The woman made a kick and a demon managed to dodge it. The kick crashed into the stone wall and a moment later the wall had a rather large hole. She twisted around decapitating the demon that got lucky the first time around.

Finally one lone demon remained, sitting against a wall trying to go further backward. The woman put her sword at his throat and said, "Sunnydale." The demon quickly gave the directions. The beautiful woman smiled brightly, and said, "Thank you, if only you had not indicated you wanted to rape me and worse, my daughter." A single slice later, left the demon holding his opened throat and gurgling to his death. The woman tossed the swords up, pulled out two smooth cloths. The swords came falling down, she cleaned the blades without grabbing them, and then the blades smoothly slid inside the sheaths on her back. She put the cloths away, and walked out, leaving a terrified human bartender with soiled pants.

Outside she stepped into the rented vehicle, and told her sixteen-year-old daughter, "We're almost there."

The following day.

Xander spotted Buffy and Willow coming to join him. Willow looked good, she wasn't particularly dressed any better, but she was definitely wearing some make up, red lips, and her hair was a bit more fluffed up than her usual straight down hair. "Hi, Lexa," Buffy greeted and joined girl-Xander on her right side.

"Hi, Lexa," Willow greeted and joined Xander on his left side. Xander, or Lexa, herself was wearing jeans and a sweater that hugged her well endowed chest. If she turned into Xander she'd look just as good - ever since his close call with Buffy the other day he had decided to play thinks safer when she didn't absolutely have to look like a wet dream. She still looked fantastic though; the jeans were tight, and her makeup was impeccable.

Yesterday night a lot of the courage that yesterday's anger and big surprises had introduced, had ebbed away from Willow. She shyly pressed her books against her chest. It had taken all her mustered up courage to keep herself from completely backing down. She knew Xander saw her as a friend, so she decided she would play the friend angle but step by step show him more. She hoped she had the guts and everything else it took to pull it off. Willow turned and took in Xander's female body, and realized she didn't really mind. This was Xander, the guy she'd had a secret crush on for nearly two years. He was still the amazing, caring, loyal, heroic individual she always had been. She smiled, her heart beating in her chest. To think that thanks to him she'd basically told him what she felt for him, and she now had the guts to do something about it. Her heart sank again, that last still remained to be seen. "Uhm, Giles asked if you could come to the library. He wanted to do some comparisons on you and Xander - you know, uh, well . . ." Willow made heavy hand gestures, not really knowing how to explain it without everyone in the vicinity who might be able to overhear thinking they had finally really lost it.

"Okay, let's go," Lexa said with a smile, while thinking. -You're such a chicken, Xander Harris for not coming to school as you.- None of them noticed Cordelia observing them from afar, and being annoyed.

Lexa walked in between Buffy and Willow, looking back and forth between her friends, wondering. "Lexa!" Cordelia's voice sounded and the three of them turned around seeing a big splash of water coming toward them. Willow and Buffy managed to dodge to the side and not get wet, but Lexa being the target and in between the two girls couldn't dodge. "YOUCH!" he screamed when the hot - too hot - water splashed onto her. "What's the big idea, Cordelia! Are you trying to put me in a hospital with third degree burns!?"

Cordelia walked over swaying her hips, while saying, "Sorry, didn't know how hot was hot enough, I'll do less next time." Cordelia stopped right in front of him, so he had to look down and his jaw dropped. Buffy and Willow looked shocked as well. Cordelia was attired much like Lexa was the first day she arrived, only more. Ultra short, tight black skirt, and a lovely white top, leaving her shoulders bare and an equally low cleavage. But where Lexa's wrap around was closed, Cordelia's smooth top was tied closed with a string down the middle of her body, allowing even greater height control - or rather depth control. Cordelia had tied the string only three quarters of the way, and very loosely, displaying an even deeper glimpses, even parts of the roundings of her breasts. Xander's eyes were glued there, he was a hormonal teenager, he had no choice.

"Xander," Cordelia started huskily, hands loosely in her sides. "Would you go out on a date with me?" Buffy's jaw dropped, and then her shoulders slumped in defeat: Xander was off limits, she should go looking up Angel she thought. Willow's eyes narrowed, her teeth grinding together as her anger grew rapidly. What did that bitch think she was doing?

"Uh, uh, uh," Xander tried, and then shook his head. "No," he stated resolutely.

"Are you certain, Xander?" Cordelia asked, untying the string opening up just a bit more. She innocently batted her eyelashes at him.

Xander looked, felt a stirring, and then shook his head hard to clear it. "No!" he stated again, slowly getting angry. "If you want to get with me, first you should get a bigger notion of me than thinking flashing some flesh is going to get me to go out with you. Second you need a serious personality transplant; get kinder, now leave me alone."

Cordelia pouted, and Buffy blinked at Xander's answer and Willow pumped her fist going 'yess' silently. Xander turned around and quickly entered the library the library. To his annoyance he noted that Cordelia came along with Buffy and Willow. He sighed, hoping the girl would get a clue and leave him alone. He had his heart set on a certain blonde.

The three girls walked around Xander to the far end of the library, and Xander stopped in the middle. "Ah," Giles said coming from his office. Jenny cam from behind a stack of books, carrying one. She walked over, and as she placed the book Giles had apparently asked her to get in front of her boyfriend, Giles spoke, "Xander, good. I brought two bottles of water, one warm and one cold as you can see." He pointed at to plastic bottles. "I'd like to make some measurements, height ratio, width ratio, agility differences and such. I hope you agree to letting me put you through a few of these tests, it would be fascinating to see how the genders differ from each other taking the exact same genetic structure. Very interesting indeed. Do you agree?"

Xander thought it over and shrugged. "Splendid," Giles said with a grin. "Now let's . . ."

"NIHAU!" a lovely voice called out as the library doors opened. Everyone turned to look at the teenage, deep brunette entering the library and then jumping from the top of the few steps high through the air, directly at Xander. Who stood completely still in shock and surprise.

"What?" Xander managed to mutter when everyone else just stood watching the buxom, exotically dressed girl fly through the air slack jawed. Her attire was a loose pants, some kind of sandals, and an smooth shirt wrapped tight around her breasts, all adorned with flowers and other motifs. Her long hair was loose apart from two tails that hung from the top of her head from two knots that were incased in lovely white cloths, and tied at their ends with green ribbons. The green-eyed girl slammed against Xander, arms wrapped around his neck, her body - and especially her prominent breasts - pressing tightly against his, and she rubbed her head against his chest, just under his right shoulder.

"Xander Harris, my lover, my fiance, my strong man, finally I found you!" the girl said rubbing up and down against him, making him feel her breasts very much so. Xander didn't move though, his eyes were still wide, his jaw open and partially pulled half in surprise, half in fright. His hands were stiff and outward, as if he was ready to start running but were frozen in position, while he made several pitiful noises from the back of his throat.

"Did she just say 'fiance'?" Willow muttered with a small voice.

Giles was cleaning his fixed glasses, and Jenny stood next to him with wide eyes. "Uhm, excuse me," Jenny asked slowly and carefully, "exactly who are you?"

The girl didn't stop rubbing herself against Xander seemingly with eternal love, and answered, "I'm Lu Xion, from hidden Chinese Amazon tribe."

While the three girls were still trying to figure out this new rival, Xander woke up. "Wha-wha-what!? Why in blazes are you here?"

"Look for my fiance of course," Lotion answered sweetly, and tiptoed looking over his shoulder at the three girls. She saw two shocked girls, and Cordelia pissed off, arms over her chest. Going from left to right, starting with Willow, Lotion appraised her rivals, "Flat chested . . ." Willow's eyes bugged out. " . . . flat chested with a crooked nose . . ." Buffy's eyes widened, and then narrowed down anger growing, her fists clenching. Lotion's gaze lingered a moment on the very sexily attired Cordelia, who smugly moved her body. " . . . penis envy bitch," Lotion finished.

"WHAT!?" Cordelia screamed out, and then clenched her whole body, grinding her teeth together. That bitch was going to get it. If not from her, it was from the other two girls who were growing more steamed by the moment.

Lotion looked up at Xander, and told him, "I can see why you came to China look for fiance."

"Xander," Buffy muttered growing pissed off, her tone said 'you better not have taken advantage of this innocent girl, and if she's not innocent I'm gonna kill her', "explain yourself."

"How the _/hell/_ am I supposed to know!?" Xander yelled out in shock, still in Lotion's death hug that was starting to get to him.

Lotion looked up at Xander, and said, "You not remember most romantic day of my life!?"

"What the hell are you talking about!?" Xander exclaimed in growing more fearful of the rising tempers in the girls behind him that he could practically smell, as well as angry with this stupid Amazon. "All I did in that village was accidentally eat the prize of a contest, watch my friend win that contest by beating the final winner, and then running for my life!"

"Hmm," Lotion said.

While Giles furiously increased his cleaning, he asked, "Uhm, Miss Lotion, perhaps you could explain to us why you think you and Mr. Harris here are engaged to be married?"

"Lotion comply," she said, and started explaining.

O

Girl-Ranma's leg finished her one single movement, hitting Xian Pu, a fantastic blue-haired girl and sent her flying off the wooden beam upon which the contest was held. The guide looked stricken, while Xander and Panda Genma finished eating the prize supreme diner. They nodded in expectant satisfaction.

As Ranma was declared winner Shampoo got up and walked over to Ranma. She took his head and placed a gentle kiss on his cheek. "AAH!" the guide exclaimed as Shampoo and several other Amazons started picking up weapons. "She just gave him the 'Kiss of Death'! Amazons proud! Losing from outsider worse than death! Now she will hunt him until she kills him!" Ranma avoided a swipe from Shampoo as Genma went over to grab him and flee.

Xander in the mean time was under barrage of a lovely brunette, her face grimaced with anger. She swung a pitch fork at Xander who ducked. Seeing how more Amazons were starting to get dangerously close, Xander saw himself forced to do something he had promised himself he would never do, but dying was something he wanted to do even less. With one powerful haymaker from his right arm across the girl's chin she went down. She looked up dazedly, Xander was vague, while he told her, "I'm really sorry, please forgive me, don't give me the Kiss of Death and everything. You left me no choice, I would never hit a woman if . . ."

"Com on, Xander!" the guide screamed in terror, grabbing by an arm and pulling him along, the two men, one panda, and one redhead running for their lives.

Lotion closed her eyes, falling into unconsciousness, muttering one last word, "Xander . . ."

O

Everyone looked shocked at the girl's story, and even more so when she suddenly pulled Xander down, and planted a loving kiss right on his lips, then made it more passionate by adding her tongue. Xander's eyes widened. Willow's, Buffy's, and Cordelia's eyes narrowed in anger. "What the _/hell/_ is wrong with you!?" Buffy screamed out. "He hit you and you fall in love with him? Don't you have any pride as a woman? How can you be in love with a guy who punched you in the face!? That's so . . . so . . . icky!?"

"Not to mention degrading!" Cordelia added grimacing.

"Hmm," Lotion said. "Ancient Amazon tradition: man defeat Amazon in combat, Amazon marry man."

"AARGH!!" Cordelia exclaimed. With a clang Giles' glasses shattered again, looking perturbed at his destroyed glasses. Xander made several more pitiful sounds.

Willow shook her head, muttering, "I always though Amazons were these great first generation examples of feminism. What a disappointment."

"THAT'S IT!!" Buffy screamed out loud, finally fed up with the Amazon and the way she was hugging Xander as if she owned him, and then the reason Willow just mentioned. "Get your claws off him, bitch!" she yelled as she pulled Xander away from her by his shoulder. A punch followed and Lotion easily dodged it. She swiped Buffy's feet from underneath her, pulled out two nunchakus and put either around one of Buffy's arms, much to the Slayer's shock. She pulled Buffy to her, and then kicked out right in Buffy's chest. The slayer was launched from her grip, flew onward until she crashed into the stone edge of the higher level. She groaned in pain as the stone around her cracked and she hung there. "My doubled training, I will triple," Buffy muttered in determination and then fell forward and slipped into unconsciousness.

Everyone but Xander and Lotion looked at the unconscious Slayer covered with pieces of stone. Willow and Cordelia swallowed and backed away a bit. "Xander," Lotion said looking deep in Xander's eyes. "I've beaten my rival for you. Marry me."

"Marry you!? Right now!?" Xander exclaimed in shock. "Are you nuts!? No way in hell, you get that!? You are in the United States now, and before we get married we first date, then live together and if we can still stand each other and still love each other, _/then/_ we get married. No sooner, got that!? WELL!?" Lotion looked about ready to cry. "And one more thing, you want to marry me, you better stop beating up my best friends!!" Lotion broke down, cried and ran out the library. "What?" Xander asked when the others stared at him.

"Wasn't that a little harsh to a girl in love with you, Xander?" Jenny asked him.

"AARGH!" Xander screamed.


	7. part 7

Xander walked out of the library muttering to himself, "Stupid women. Stupid librarians. Girl comes in demands to be married, insults my friends, beats up one of them, I tell her the damn truth, and the fake macho wimp goes all teary-eyed and suddenly I'm the bad guy. 'You could have brought that a little less harsh'. Henh. The girl wouldn't understand anything _/but/_ harsh, clinging to me like I'm some kind of favorite toy. She should be lucky I chalked it up to cultural difference, and I didn't consider her insane and put her out her and our misery."

Thus Xander stepped into the men's bathroom, before the other insane women could charge him again. He stepped in front of the mirror and looked at himself. Ever since he smashed his hand through a rock for the first time, and Genma and Ranma actually encouraged him, and not talked him down like his father did, his confidence in himself had been boosted. He remembered being Lexa in the Bronze, Buffy's assessment of Jonathan's lack of confidence, and Willow's reaction. Like he had been; he had decided then and there he'd do for Willow what Ranma and Genma had done for him, even if it meant she'd focus on him, and his chances with Buffy diminished. Of course that was before he had a whole horde of other women after him; one Amazon, one rich bitch. Three of them now, except the one he was interested in. Part of him regretted that decision, but only for a short while; it was fantastic seeing his childhood friend having some confidence in himself. He splashed some water in his face and looked at his female self. "Damn it," she said out loud. "Greatest damn blessing I could ever have hoped for, and now this crap as part of it. 'Multiple orgasms' why the _/hell/_ did I say that out loud?"

She looked at himself for a few moments, and sighed. She let the warm water flow, waiting, and said, "No sense hiding, they all know how to turn me back and are willing to burn me to a crisp to do so. Aargh!" She used the warm water, closed the faucet and then he left again!

Outside casually leaning against the outside wall was a thirty-plus-year-old Amazon woman. "Jusenkyo. Not only is he strong, but he cherishes his female side too, without becoming a gibbering emotional fool. What a man. Hmm, greatest blessing, eh?"

-----

Buffy slowly got to her knees, grabbed the back of her head and shook it to get rid of the drowsiness. "Did someone catch the number on that truck that ran me over?" Buffy muttered as she slowly stood up.

Cordelia came back to life from the shocked fear she had at watching that girl beat Buffy with one move. She was determined suddenly, and went over to the counter. Right in front of Giles she smashed her fists, and said, "You will train me!"

"I beg your pardon?" Giles answered, still a little perturbed at watching a normal girl beat a Slayer with such impetuous ease. He could understand the whole 'use Buffy's strength against her' routine that Xander had displayed earlier, but this girl had beat Buffy with superior skill, superior speed, and superior strength. It was unnatural.

"You will train me, old man!" Cordelia threatened with a pointed finger. "It's obvious if I want Xander, I'm going to have to be able to beat that skank, and that means training!"

"But I know nothing of that chi business that allows them to develop such strength," Giles answered her with a confused face. Jenny, Buffy, and Willow looked at the exchange with some interest. "I'm afraid I'm not of much help."

Cordelia narrowed her eyes and added, "Don't worry about that; I'll get books on chi and tai chi subjects. You just be there to teach me the basics and guide me through it. Or is a trainer of Slayers not good enough to train an ordinary beauty queen?"

"Well . . ."

"Hell no!" Buffy exclaimed enraged. "He'll be busy training me six time as much as before! He'll have no time for a rich bitch like you!"

"Shut up, Summers! I'll pay for the lessons, Giles, if that's necessary!" Cordelia stated with a growl. "How does a hundred bucks per lesson sound?"

Giles eyebrows raised, that was quite some money. "Uh," Willow piped up, and said, "Wouldn't it be cheaper to go to a dojo?"

Cordelia looked behind her at the redhead, and then said, "You're right, thanks Willow." Then she was off. Giles got angry at Willow, but took a deep breath to calm himself. A kiss from his girlfriend on his right cheek calmed him down completely.

"After school, Giles, we're training like we've never trained before!" Buffy stated and then she pulled Willow along to their class.

-----

Somewhere else in Sunnydale

"I failed, mother. I could not seduce future husband, I disgraced," Lotion stated with infinite sadness, a few last tears slowly rolling down her cheeks.

"Ah, do not worry so much, Lotion," her mother told her with a smile. "You heard him, he did not outright deny you. American men are different, they take their time searching for their mate. Perhaps a wise course of action. If push comes to shove, you should simply do as he asks. Date him, and show him you're the best woman for him."

"Yes, you be right as usual," Lotion said taking a bow.

"To do that, the first thing you need to do is learn English better. An accent and some occasional error isn't a problem, but you seem to be unable to pronounce a single sentence correctly," her mother stated, looking at her. Lotion took a bow. "Best place to do that, _/and/_ to be closer to your future husband, would be to go to the same high school as he goes to."

"High school?" Lotion asked a little shocked.

"Yes, it seems the husband you've chosen won't be moving to live in our village easily either, so we'll undoubtedly be here quite a while, we require a source of income," her mother stated with a calm voice then smiled. Lotion swallowed, she'd seen that smile. "It seems they have not yet tasted Ramen in this place, or any foods with 3,000-year-old secret Amazon recipes, or any other authentic Asian foods, with the exception of a few mass market well-known dishes. They could use a restaurant."

"I see," Lotion said, slumping a bit. "Quick retrieval of husband and return home impossible."

"And that would only mean your husband isn't as strong as he appeared to be, but first, that might happen yet after all, at the very least, it will be a good test of his meddle," her mother said.

"Hiya! Mother! No test meddle!" Lotion exclaimed in fright. "Last guy test meddle, in hospital with broken legs, and broken ribs, gibbering ununderstandble things for two months before leaving village broken man! No test meddle Xander!" Her mother just grinned. Lotion jerked back and then ran, saying, "Must warn precious husband!"

"That will do him no good, Lotion," her mother said with a smile.

-----

Xander was in between classes and walked alongside Buffy and Willow. "So, Xander . . . uhm . . ." Willow said twisting her fingers, trying to muster up the courage to ask him out on a date, ". . . nice weather we're having, right?"

Xander looked at her, and answered, "I guess . . ."

"Well," Buffy said with a smile and asked. "How about we three go out to the bronze tonight? Just us three, and the real you Xander, having some fun." Xander give a non-committal sound as he clasped his hands behind his back. "You know, without super luscious girls, queen bitches of high schools, and those unfeminist . . ."

"Nihau, Xander!"

Buffy's face crunched up in annoyance. "That," she mumbled.

"Came to warn precious husband!" Lotion said with great haste, making Willow and Buffy's face crunch up with anger and hate. "Great danger coming! You must hurry!"

"Great danger?" Xander asked her, and then shrugged. "What else is new?"

"No, hurry, run, hide! This is really, really bad! Fearful dragon coming!" Lotion said, and suddenly her eyes went wide and took a step back.

"Huh?" Xander and Willow said.

"She means me."

The three of them turned around and looked at an older version of Lotion. She had her arms folded across her chest . . . actually she had them folded under her chest, pushing up her breasts making them look even more impressive then they were normally. "Whoa," Xander said, taking her in slowly. Willow gave him an annoyed nudge. "Oh, right, who are you, again? She said something about you being a dragon?"

The woman smiled. "She Deo!" Lotion exclaimed in fear for her love. "She my mother! She wish to test your meddle."

Willow's, Xander's and Buffy's eyes widened in shock. Now that they looked better they could see some resemblance. Same color hair, her face had a few similar curves, but like most people Lotion resembled her unknown father more. For one thing their eye-colors were different. Where Lotion's were green, Deo's were a striking deep blue, and had a less rounded face. She was just as attractive as Lotion though.

"Indeed," Deo stated with a smile. "I was forced to choose a husband from the dim-witted, weaklings amongst our tribe. I will make sure my daughter will not share the same fate! She will marry a _/real/_ man!"

Willow and Buffy looked dumbfounded at the proclamation, and so did many students who looked at the shocking events. "And how are you going to do that?" Xander asked casually, Lotion shook her head.

"By defeating you and making you acknowledge Amazon martial arts is superior," Deo lied casually.

"What!?" Xander said in shock.

"What is going on here!? Why aren't you kids getting to class!?" the voice of the troll-like principal Snyder screeched and appeared next to Deo.

"Shut up, fool," Deo commented and smacked her fist on the upside of his head, and he slumped into unconsciousness. Everyone cheered in happiness. "Now let us, fight."

"I can't," Xander said with a big smile.

"What?" Deo asked shocked, and Lotion looked equally at Xander.

Xander shook his head and said, "I will not hit a woman unless I absolutely have too, besides you just bashed Snyder unconscious. You're my personal her now! I can't fight my hero!"

"Oh," Deo said looking at the unconsciousness man. "Well, then I'll have to make you." Deo jumped forward and Xander went to defend himself. One punch hit his gut, and a follow up smashed across his face and he launched back along the corridor. He managed a somersault in the air, but still didn't allow him to land properly. He landed with his feet but his momentum backward was too great, he simply dropped to the ground and tumbled painfully a few times.

Xander shook his head, and then looked at a serene Deo, standing just before the shocked three girls. "That's it, now you've done it," Xander said and ran at her with a roar. He brought his fist back, threw it, and stopped right before he hit Deo. He looked at Deo, Deo looked at him, Willow, Buffy and Lotion looked at the two with a lot of apprehension. Xander blinked and then straightened up, saying, "Nope, sorry, not good enough."

Deo grinned, and then snaked out a hand to Xander's crotch. Xander watched shocked as she patted his balls, and said, "What's the matter? Don't have the balls to fight me?"

Xander's face went slack for a moment, and then grimaced up with rage, saying, "That does it, _/BITCH/_!! Now you made me _/have/_ to!" With an enraged roar Xander threw a right punch at the woman's face that was only a centimeter below his own; Amazons! With casual ease Deo twisted sideways and made Xander miss. Before she could use his arm to pull him along he pulled it back while he twisted himself. Instead though, Deo lashed out a foot, hit him in the gut and he flew back a meter where he crashed against the wall cracking it.

"Xander!" Willow, Buffy and Lotion exclaimed with shock and concern. Buffy remembered how she was knocked out almost the same way an hour and a half earlier. Xander though grimaced and got up.

"You're going down," he said and attacked with a kick to Deo's gut. She twisted aside and immediately turned the kick in a roundhouse kick toward where Deo had gone and she pulled her head back, making Xander miss. "I _/will/_ defeat you, devil woman!" Xander proclaimed and continued with a rapid combo of his muscular arms and legs, which Deo easily avoided or parried with her hands. She backed up and beckoned him mockingly on. Xander tightened his teeth together as he followed her out of the school, running. A moment later the three girls ran after them as well.

Xander followed the woman out on the grass and everyone looked at the spectacle. Deo stopped, and Xander grinned. He jumped forward high, made a somersault, and as he kicked out towards the woman he said, "I have you now." Just in time, Deo split in two as she laughed.

"What!?" Xander exclaimed, his eyes widening in shock as he passed in between the women. He landed and turned around and watched as Deo started laughing truly evilly. Chills ran down a lot of people's spines as they heard it and watched as both Deos split apart again, the laugh now coming four times overlapping. The four Deos now split up three ways, two coming our of the middle, and stopping the laugh, Deo said, "Ancient Amazon secret technique Cat Curiosity!"

"Oh, no!" Lotion exclaimed in horror as Xander was surrounded by a circle of Deos, who then started running around him more and more rapidly, eventually simply floating. "This technique no beaten even by great warrior king Yung Sang! Xander doesn't stand a chance!"

Now the Deos were nothing but a blur, and Xander looked around with gritted teeth. He could barely see one whole Deo, just blurs, how could he figure out which was the real one? Or were they all real? "Okay," he said and simply charged forward. He threw a punch which went straight through the blurred Deos. A fist hit him hard across his cheek and he staggered back to the middle of the circle. A kick hit him in the back, and before he could even stagger forward another fist hit him on his right side. "Aah!" he yelled out in pain, as Deo's evil laughter once again sounded across the school grounds, eliciting chills.

"We have to help, Xander!" Willow said in fear and Xander seemingly completely out clashed. "If some legendary warrior couldn't beat this." Buffy nodded and was ready to step forward; saving her friends was in her element.

"No!" Lotion said, putting a hand in front of Buffy to stop her. "This Xander's fight. Besides, you'll only get hurt, and make mother angry, and punishment for Xander greater."

Xander had gotten several more kicks and punches to him. Damn how could he beat this, seeing the Deos twisting around him in his mind's eye. So fast, so . . . "Right!" Xander said, and roared as he charged to his right straight for the twisting Deos.

"Ha, ha, ha! That won't work, haven't you learned!" Deos' voices sounded ready to hit Xander again.

All Deos' eyes widened in shock as Xander suddenly jumped backward screwing around his axis. He kicked down, just in case, and landed on the ground directly in the path of the illusionary Deos who went straight through him. He straightened and threw his fist straight into the opposite direction of the moving Deos. An instant later a Deo jumped in the air, just in front of Xander. "There," Xander said jumping up after her. Deo looked in shock as Xander's left leg hit her straight in the gut, doubling her over. ". . . moving to fast to do anything else," Xander said, and then turned around, ramming his right foot across Deo's right cheek and making her twist away from him. He finished, ". . . the one avoiding the fist, is the real one."

Xander landed, and so did Deo, the fake Deos fading away. Deo touched her sore cheek, which was sporting a graze wound. Willow, Buffy and Lotion looked astonished at the outcome. Lotion then swooned, and squealed, "What a warrior! What a husband he'll be!" Willow's and Buffy's eyes darkened at that.

Deo looked at her hand carrying a few slivers of skin, and thought, -I should have made the fakes jump as well.- Deo then grinned brightly, and laughed jovially, "Incredible, you're the first man to be have managed to hit me in thirty-nine years; that's when I was born." Xander wanted to speak, but Deos smiling face continued, "But this is not enough, Harris. If you wish to avoid the fate of marrying my daughter . . ."

"I will _/not/_ marry your daughter, get that through your thick head! Even if you beat me up and tie me up, and drag me in front of a priest, I _/still/_ will not marry her!" Xander told the woman in anger.

"Ah, if only I weren't married myself," Deo said batting her eyelashes at Xander.

"You'd end up in jail, you demon witch!" Xander hissed at her in anger. "I'm not and adult yet. Older than eighteen with someone younger than eighteen equals prison for the one older!"

"Really? Americans need glasses then, because you are most definitely a man," Deo said licking her lips against as she took in Xander's form.

"Mother!" Lotion exclaimed both in shock, anger, and mortification, as Buffy and Willow watched with dropped jaws as the older Amazon was casually flirting with their best friend - and romantic interest.

Deo grinned, and said, "No matter, you have by no means beat me, Xander Harris! And the fate I have in mind, is far worse then being beaten or tied up." Suddenly she shot forward, and poked her right index and middle finger hard into Xander's left pelvic bone just above where his leg fit. At the same time she hit the same point on his right pelvic bone with her left fingers.

"AAH!" Xander exclaimed, unable to defend himself against the suddenly fast movement.

"NO!" Lotion, Willow, and Buffy exclaimed in horror. Xander staggered back two steps and then steadied, checking things out.

"Within three days, Xander, you'll be begging me to marry, Lotion! Bye, bye!" Deo told him and then jumped high and far away.

Xander whipped around, and looked at Lotion, asking, "What did she do?"

"I don't know," Lotion said, whimpering. "I've never seen that technique." Xander groaned in frustration.

-----

"Eat up, girls! Fresh pork, with potatoes, and red cabbage with apple sauce! Straight from my very own kitchen," Xander proclaimed with pride, putting the plates with food in front of his friends sitting at the table. Buffy and Willow looked at the food skeptically as Xander put his own plate at his own place, and watched as his girl friends took careful sniffs of the food. It smelled pretty good; would it taste good to? "Why aren't you eating?" Xander asked perturbed, and then his eyes widened. "WHY IN BLAZES DO YOU THINK I CAN'T COOK!?!"

Buffy and Willow shrank back a little, and then Buffy said with a small voice, "Well, you're a guy, and . . ."

"FOR EVERY THOUSAND MALE CHEF COOKS THERE'S ONLY ONE FEMALE!!" Xander screamed in anger. Nobody messed with his cooking! "I HAD TO COOK REGULARLY SINCE I WAS EIGHT BECAUSE MY MOTHER WAS TOO DRUNK TO DO IT! **NOW_/ EAT/_**!!

"Okay, okay, okay!" Willow and Buffy both said scarily. Quickly they grabbed knife and fork and took a bit of the red cabbage. They both looked at each other, and then chewed tastefully before swallowing it down. They took some potatoes and gravy. Willow ate that, while Buffy put a piece of meat to it. They ate and looked with enjoyment again.

"Mmh," Buffy said.

"Oh, yeah, this is delicious," Willow commented with a grin and continued.

"You know that, Willow, you were close enough to know I cooked, so how come?" Xander asked deeply betrayed.

"I knew you cooked, I just never thought you managed anything good," Willow said with a smile, and watched Xander's expression darken. "Sorry," she said sheepishly.

"Xander, can I have a coke?" Buffy asked a little afraid he might think she was getting it because she thought his cooking was bad.

"Sure, Buff," Xander said, and got up. He went over to the fridge and opened it. He reached in and just as hand reached the threshold of air and refrigerated air he went stiff. His teeth started clattering, and his entire body turned blue, then he keeled over sideways. He stayed twitching on the ground.

"XANDER!" both of his friends screamed out in horror and ran over.

"Xander, Xander, are you alright?" Willow asked him concerned checking him out all over, also using her hands to feel for obvious injuries.

With clattering teeth, Xander managed to push out, "No, c-c-c-coold."

"Huh?" Buffy wondered looking around. "But it's warm."

Indeed it was warm and Xander's blue color was already clearing up. A minute later he sat up, flexing his body; nothing was the matter. "That was weird, Xan," Willow said as he got up.

Xander nodded, and then Deo appeared on his balcony. "You!" Xander hissed as Lotion's mother stepped through the door with an evil smile.

"Indeed me," Deo said with an evil smile, and pointed at a flask hanging by a necklace around her neck. "This is the antidote, and I'll only give it to you, after you've married my daughter."

"What!? Antidote to what!?" Xander yelled in anger, stalking toward her.

"The Reverse Polar Bear technique," Deo stated with a huge grin.

"The what!?" all three teens said in confusion.

Deo grinned and said, "The polar bear is extremely resilient to pain. Hitting you're two special point on your pelvic bone as I did today, I disrupted you're chi flows. Now, the reverse from the polar bear holds for you: you can't even handle a tiny bit of cold without happening to you what just happened. Long term exposure to temperatures even as high as four degrees centigrade will kill you even."

Xander growled and said, "I'm not marrying Lotion, demon woman. California stays pretty warm all year through."

"Indeed," Deo said smiling serenely. "But think about it, no more refreshing drinks . . ." Xander shrugged. ". . . no more refreshing dives into a swimming pool . . ." Xander shrugged. ". . . no more going out on a rainy day without three-layers of water proof clothing . . ." Xander shrugged. ". . . and Jusenkyo victim: no more turning into a girl."

Xander's eyes widened. "You, you, horrible, devilish, evil, bitch! You can't do that to me! I _/love/_ being able to turn into a girl! You took away my greatest blessing!" Xander screamed out in shock, making Buffy and Willow look at each other with raised eyebrows.

"I know, that was the point," Deo stated with a smile.

Xander grumbled inside, and then lifted his arm. "I can take it!" Xander yelled and opened the cold water faucet in the kitchen. He moved his hand too it, and the moment his nail touched the outer edge of the stream he jerked back and went blue, teeth clattering. Then he keeled over again.

"Well, tata," Deo said and jumped from the balcony, yelling, "I'll expect you're 'I do' very soon!"

"Xander!" Willow and Buffy once again exclaimed concerned and went over to him.

A few minutes later he was back to normal again. "I will take that bitch apart and get that antidote!" Xander said with determination and stalked to the exit. He stopped after three steps and turned around to his friends. "Oh, shit, I don't know where she is!"

"We don't either," Willow told him.

"AARGH!!"

-----

Xander stalked across school grounds, grumbling profanities at Lotion and more so her mother. He didn't really look where he was going and he accidentally bumped Jack O'Tool, an bully upper classman. "Harris," O'Tool demanded.

"Hmm?" Xander said turned around, watching O'Tool fling around a butterfly knife.

"You will apologize, or I will cut you up," Jack demanded.

Xander raised his eyebrows, and then narrowed his gaze. "Give me that, you fool!" Xander said, grabbing the knife out of O'Tool's hands with ease. Jack looked shocked, and then more so when Xander's body started twitching and shuddering as if being on the north pole, dropping the metal knife, and then turning blue before keeling over.

"Shit man, what's wrong with you?" Jack O'Tool said fearfully. He quickly grabbed his knife and ran away.

Cordelia arrived with him a moment later, and she asked concerned as his color slowly cleared up, "Are you alright? What happened to you?"

Xander sat up, and said, "That devil bitch Deo."

"Huh?"

"Lotion's mother, she's worse than Lotion. When I get my hands on her . . ." Xander muttered.

"You'll do what?" that annoyingly, deceptively sweet voice asked.

Xander whipped around looked directly at the woman, the flask still around her neck. "Mine!" he hissed and made a grasp for the flask, and seemingly missed by a mile. "Huh?"

"Too slow, boy," she told him.

With a roar he made another pass, but Deo easily jumped backward out of the way. "You're three decades too young to beat me, Harris, you better marry my daughter," Deo told him with a huge smile. Xander growled. "Oh!" Deo said with a smile, lifting his finger. "Last night, I did not yet have an address where you can contact me to agree to marry Lotion, now I do." She handed a flyer over to Xander and one to Cordelia.

Xander read, Cordelia read out loud, "Authentic Chinese Amazon and other Asian food at the brand new Amazon Dragon Chinese restaurant. Taste Asian foods very little people in the western world have had the privilege of tasting. Multiple flavors of ramen. We deliver. Come enjoy the Amazon way!" Then there was an address. Cordelia folded open the flyer and found the menu wrapped inside, and she checked that out as well.

"If you excuse me, I have more flyers to pass out," Deo said and then jumped high to the school roof, throwing flyers left and right from the basket she was holding, yelling, "New authentic Amazon food! Come try it! Address on flyer! Menu included! We deliver!" She jumped onward further into Sunnydale.

"Restaurant!?" Xander exclaimed in frustration. The women were apparently planning on staying. "Aaargh!" He calmed down a bit, and said, "I need to get that antidote! Also number 59 seems quite tasty." Then he ran forward, intending to jump to the roof as well.

Snyder blocked the path, and said, "You will do no such thing Mr. Harris, you will stay in . . ." Xander's foot crashed into Snyder's face and he used the troll as a launching board. Snyder keeled over and fell to the floor. "I will call your parents!" he threatened from the ground.

"I'm emancipated!" he called back from the air.

Snyder's eyes widened, and then groaned, "NOOOOooo!"

"Where's Xander going!?" Buffy asked, as she and Willow arrived and watched Xander go.

Cordelia handed them the flyer, and he said, "He said something about an antidote and number 59 sounding tasty."

Buffy and Willow gave each other a look, and then ran away. "Summers! Rosenberg! Oh, I give up," Snyder said from the ground in irritation.

-----

Xander ran into the restaurant and found Deo cooking, and Lotion waiting tables. "Why hello customer, what can I help you with?" she asked Xander.

"I'll take one antidote, and one number 59," Xander told the sexy woman.

She smiled and said, "It won't go that easy. You'll have to pay for 59, but the antidote you'll have to get yourself."

"No problem," Xander said and reached over to the flask hanging by her neck. Deo seemed having no room to maneuver. Just as he was about to reach it though, Deo twisted her body and the flask was on the back of her neck. Xander grumbled. "Give!" he said reaching for the necklace around Deo's neck. "OW!" Xander yelled as a spatula hit his hands, a moment later he found himself flying out the door, crashing to the ground and tumbling onward in the busy shopping street of Sunnydale center. He growled as he got up, and charged back inside. A moment later he came flying back out with a groan of pain.

Buffy and Willow arrived and watched Xander go back inside, only to come flying out again with another painful groan. It happened again, and then another time. "Xander, this is useless," Willow said sadly. "She's too good."

"NO!" Xander said, and ran back inside, only to come flying back out.

Deo came walking out calmly, and told him, "You should listen to your friend, future son in law. There's no way you can even stay inside the restaurant, let alone get the antidote."

Xander grumbled and his eyes fell on a piece of paper mounted next to the door: 'Waiter/waitress wanted.' He pointed at the sign, and said, "I'll apply for the job."

Deo's eyes widened for a moment, and then turned to look at the sign. She smiled, and thought, -Smart too!- She nodded and said, "Ah, you're hired, Xander Harris, come on in and check out your waiter uniform."

-----

Cordelia, Willow, and Buffy sat at the table during lunch time watching. "I cannot believe he decided to wear _/that/_ just so he can turn into a girl again," Buffy muttered when she watched Xander, twinkles in her eyes. "I feel for him."

A woman gave Xander a slap on his ass. He halted for a moment, and then smiled at the woman as he placed their order rapidly on the their table.

"Uhhuh, I hope he gets to benefit from the friendship I'm displaying by watching him go through this debasement," Willow said, taking a bite from her 'ramen', and said, "Mmh."

"No you're not, you hypocrite," Cordelia answered her. "You're here to ogle Xander's naked chest, just like Buffy, just like me, and just like every other woman in this restaurant."

Indeed, all Xander was wearing was pants, socks, shoes, an apron in front of his crotch, and a butterfly tie. His chest and arms were naked. Buffy blushed and tried to sputter an explanation. Willow looked at Cordelia, growing red and sputtered, "I-I'm not . . . best f-f-friends do . . ." She slumped in defeat at Cordelia's intense gaze and nodded. "I'm evil," Willow muttered.

"Table six and eight, Harris!" Deo called and placed a finished big order.

"Yes, ma'am!" Xander called enthusiastically balancing five bowls of ramen. Three he brought to table six, and the other two he placed rapidly in front of a couple. "Bon appetite, ma'am, sir." And Xander went away the girl looking after him.

"Could you stare a little less? I'm right here," the guy asked gently.

The girl twisted her head violently, and with narrowed eyes she asked, "Did I complain when you dragged me to that topless restaurant last week? With _/onlyfemale/_ waitresses?" The guy swallowed nervously. "Stop complaining, and eat your food," she told him and he went to do that. She nodded with satisfaction.

Xander watched as Deo turned to her cooking, and had left the flask seemingly unattended. He reached for it rapidly, and just as he was about to grab it, a hot spatula crashed against his hand - the flask gone. "Order for table ten!" Deo called it.

-God damn it!- Xander thought nursing his hurt hand. "Table ten!" he cried out enthusiastically and took the order.

Lotion who was at the door let in a new set of customers from the long line as a different set left. "New customers at table twenty!" Deo called out as the customers sat down.

"Table twenty!" Xander called and practically danced over. "Can I take you're order, ma'ams?"

A few moments later he returned to counter, placed the dirty dishes down, and named the order, Deo casually nodded. She placed a new order on the counter, and said, "Table twenty-five!"

"Right," Xander said, as another employee took the dirty dishes to be washed, and watched with fascination how Xander kept the whole thing running like a giant show. Xander reached for the flask back around Deo's neck, and it suddenly flung up, wrapped around Xander's head and banged him on the counter.

"Table twenty-five," Deo calmly repeated.

"Twenty-five!" Xander said perkily, but with a grumble. He picked up the order on a larger plate, and smoothly went over to the table.

Buffy watched Xander, feeling his fate, and said, "This is so horrible. I can't watch this anymore." She casually kept her eyes glued to his muscular torso, along with Willow and Cordelia. Willow nodded in agreement but didn't stop watching either.

-----

At six, when Xander got off his shift a new male waiter came out to do the night shift, and he casually wore a blouse. Breathing heavily at the counter he said, "Hey! He doesn't have to!"

"He doesn't look as good as you do," Deo said with a smile, the flask still firmly around her neck.

"RAAAAAR!" Xander screamed in frustration. "You demon bitch, I'll find a way to get that flask, I promise."

Buffy and Willow came back into the restaurant at that time, and Deo answered, "You won't, not ever." Deo smiled and thought, -I might as well show him.- "Come, I'll show you why you will never beat me, you're just several decades too young," Deo said and beckoned him with her. Buffy and Willow looked at each other and followed.

They came out in the garden, and Deo made a quick campfire, then took some chestnuts from a bucked and dumped them in. "This is one of the most ancient Amazon techniques, future son in law, watch closely," Deo said, and so did Xander, and Buffy and Willow as well. Her hands moved like a blur and a few moments later she held up three chestnuts with unblemished hands.

The three Scooby Gang members looked with slack jaws at that, before Buffy said, "That can't be possible."

"It is," Deo stated with a smile, and said, "The Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire technique. I move my hands so fast, the flames cannot touch my hands. Do you understand now why you can never take this flask from me, Xander? You want to take this flask, you'll have to be able to do that at a minimum."

Deo watched him. Any random man would crack now, of course most would have cracked already. Xander still watched transfixed at the fire, three more chestnuts still inside. "I quit," Xander said, and Deo nodded half-sad, half-happy, "I will come back once I've mastered that move!" Deo's eyes widened and took in Xander.

"Xander!?" Buffy and Willow both exclaimed when they watched Xander take a step closer to the fire. "You can't learn that! You can't be doing what I . . ." Buffy was interrupted. Xander's hands shot out, grabbed the two chestnuts and pulled back out. His teeth were gritted together, and he finally let out a yell of pain after he pulled his hands free. He dropped the chestnuts and rapidly reached in the fire for the final chestnut, once again screaming in pain. Buffy and Willow watched in shock as they looked at Xander's blistered hand.

"No time like the present to start training," Xander then hissed at Deo and left, two concerned girls after him.

"My, what a guy," Deo muttered after he left. "He will never master it though."

"What happen if he not?" Lotion asked her mother as she came from the side of the house/restaurant.

Deo looked over and shook her head, "Eventually he will end up with useless hands if he trains like that." Lotion looked stricken. "Don't worry, I'll give up before that happens," she told her daughter.

Then Lotion asked, "What happen if he does?"

Deo looked over to Lotion, eyes wide, never really considering that possibility. Then she said, "If he does, I've never seen a guy with so much meddle ever before. He's already more than passed, if he does, you _/must/_ make him your husband for whole new reasons." Lotion nodded, and then sighed like a girl in love.

-----

Back on the beach in front of Xander's apartment, he had built a fire, and dumped some stuff in there to grab out of. He'd buy chestnuts tomorrow, the store was closed now. "Xander, you cannot do this!" Willow called concerned.

"AAH!" he screamed as he went to grab the things out of the fire. Buffy and Willow both bit their lips as they watched Xander go at it, screaming in pain.

An hour later Buffy tried again to stop Xander, watching in concern at the blisters on the blisters on the blisters and several popped-open, bleeding ones on Xander's hand. "Xander, if you keep this up, you'll have no hands left," Buffy said with concern.

"Shut up, Buffy!" Xander said angrily. "I _/will/_ master this!" Once again he went, and once again he screamed in pain. Then again. Willow tried to stop again, but he denied her. Finally, another five minutes of trying later, he sat back in exhaustion, and yelled in pain as the beach sand made contact with his burned hands.

Buffy and Willow went over and pulled him up. "No buts anymore, Xander, resolve face!" Willow told him, having doubted about using it in order not to crush Xander's dream. But it was obvious he couldn't go on. Willow covered the fire with sand, and then the two girls took Xander inside as behind them the sun slowly started to set. Xander let them take him inside and they took him to the kitchen corner. Willow opened the cold water and held up Xander's burned hands by his arms where they weren't hurt, and suddenly realized the insidiousness of Deo's actions. Xander couldn't tolerate cold water! "Buffy, hold him tight," Willow said. Buffy looked aside and made a confused sound, then understood.

"Huh, what?" Xander drowsily asked. "YAAA!!" he yelled out, and then his body started convulsing and shuddering at the seeming freezing cold. He tried to pull back, but Buffy held him tightly as Willow kept his hands under the cold water to clean out the sand and smooth over as many of the wounds as possible. Finally she pulled the hands out and looked at a completely out of it blue Lexa, her whole body still convulsing.

"Okay, now what?" Buffy asked deep concern in her voice.

Willow said, "Put her on the couch, and start looking for something to dress hi hands with." Willow pulled a book from her school bag, and held it up. "Jenny gave me this, she'll be training me in magic. This is a recipe book for all kinds of potions. Not magical ones yet, she said, but all kinds of old herbal remedies, proven to work. There's got to be something for burn wounds. If Xander has the ingredients in the house or growing around it . . ."

Buffy nodded as she finished putting Lexa still shuddering and convulsing and clattering teeth down on the couch. "Oh, god, Willow, she's turning purple, you kept her under the water too long," Buffy said in shock.

"Go grab warm blankets as well," Willow told her friend and stopped leafing through book for now. "I'll go make warm water to cover him with." Buffy nodded and went to do her tasks.

Fifteen minutes later Xander opened his eyes and found his arms wrapped in bandages, painful, but cooling without being too cool. He looked up at two angry girls. Buffy asked, "Is that worth it, Xander? All this to turn into a girl."

"Oh, this has gone far beyond that. This is personal," Xander told her.

"Xander, you can't beat her on this, you can't master that, not without a responsible teacher to help you at least. I doubt they actually train this with an actual fire," Willow told him sternly, but with concern. "Why don't just accept this, and give up?"

"And marry Lotion?" Xander asked her.

"Can't be that bad a fate," Willow said before she could catch herself. Making the others looked at her shocked. Willow meant it, she rather lose Xander and watch him marry that round-breasted bitch than watch him hurt himself like that this. Her heart ached, and slowly, reluctantly Buffy nodded. Xander snorted. "Besides, you can just give up, admit she's better. I doubt she's going to let you die next time there's rain. I doubt she's that cold-blooded a killer, I think she'll give you the cure if only you - I don't know - grovel?"

"Oh, no, this devil woman is going down," Xander said angrily.

"Men," Buffy muttered. "Get some sleep Xander, okay? No more training with the fire. We can't be around treating more wounds, we have to go home before our parents call the cops."

"Yeah, Xander," Willow said sadly. Xander nodded, feeling the pain. "I'll come by in the morning, redressing your hands, okay?"

"Okay."

-----

Willow entered Xander's apartment in the morning as agreed, having been given a key, as had Buffy. "Xander?" she asked, looking around. Was he still in bed? Then there was a muffled scream of determination. Willow noticed smoke through the glass doors leading to the balcony and the beach. "Oh, my god," she said and quickly ran out. True enough, there was Xander training with the fire again.

"Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!" he screamed when he failed again, then tried once more.

"XANDER! DAMN YOU!" Willow screamed in horror and concern as she saw the bandages having been burned off to the wrist, where there was a blackened edge. Xander looked up, and Willow grabbing him by his underarms and started dragging him back inside. "Couldn't you at least have waited until the wounds were healed!" Willow said with deep concern. She forced him down upon the couch and she examined his horribly burned hands, and then looked up in Xander's teary eyes. "I know it hurts, but I've got more ointment, that worked last night, right?" Willow asked him in concern.

"Hurt? . . . Oh, the pain," Xander said. Yes, now that she reminded him of it he felt the burning raging pain in his hands and grimaced. He cried onward lightly, and asked Willow, "Why can't I do it, Willow? What am I doing wrong?"

"Damn it, Xander," Willow said as she got out the cooling ointment and gently administrated it to Xander's hands. He winced with the pain of touch. "This is some ancient secret Amazon technique, probably takes years and years and years of training to get fast enough, and you expect to do it in a day?"

Xander shook his head, and said, "There's some trick to it, or she wouldn't have showed it to me as possible. She expected me to crumble and beg, but she also kept open the possibility that I could do it too. I know it, that devil bitch is too evil. If I gave up, couldn't or can't do it, she'll show how it's done and hold that over my head for the rest of my live."

Willow finished with the ointment and cut away the remaining bandages, and pulled fresh ones from her bag. "You're such a stupid, stupid, guy," Willow muttered and then looked in his eyes. "And I love you for it." Xander looked at Willow and blinked. Suddenly Willow had grabbed a hold of all her courage and leaned over, giving him a gentle kiss on the lips, then backed away.

Xander looked at her, shocked. Willow was beautiful, always had been, and now having the guts to put on just a little make-up, and working at her attire a bit, she could even be sexy. "Willow . . ." Xander said, looking at the lips that had just touched his.

"I know, Xander," Willow told him with a shy smile. "You don't think of me that way, just a friend." She started bandaging him, and continued, "But I'm going to make you think of me that way, and don't worry, I'm not going all psycho on you like Cordelia and that bitch Lotion."

Xander nodded, grateful at least for that.

-----

Xander sat in class, not paying attention to the teacher. He mulled it over and over in his mind, while he looked at the chestnuts he was painfully holding in his right hand and letting them roll with his fingers. How in blazes could you move you're arms so fast? He sighed in frustration; he just didn't know. He turned his head and looked out the window of the classroom, at the tree just outside of it. Thinking and thinking, and coming up with nothing. He watched as a leaf let go and was pulled along by the wind. The leaf went down, and then up again, it curled around a loop several times, made several twists and turns. Xander just couldn't think of how it could be done. He watched the leaf go down rapidly to the ground, more rapidly then he expected the leaf to go . . . Suddenly his eyes widened in understanding. He sat up straight, and raising his painful right hand in the air, he yelled out, "THAT'S IT! I UNDERSTAND!"

"Mr. Harris . . ." the teacher started admonishing him, but to everyone's surprise Xander jumped up from his desk and jumped over to the door. Xander opened the door and disappeared out the classroom.

"Oh, no," Willow muttered, and she jumped up to follow him, Buffy right behind her.

"Ms. Ros- Summers, what!?" the teacher tried.

Xander ran out on the lawn, to the tree and found several sticks. He put them together, and lit the fire. He threw his chestnuts in. He grinned deeply. Pure muscles would never allow him to move so fast, but if he channeled his chi around and through them and his arms, his chi should push his arms forward. That would make him move so fast. "Xander don't!" Willow called in concern, Buffy's concerned call following right behind. Xander grinned and concentrated, then moved his arms with enormous speed, blurring.

Willow and Buffy's eyes widened in shock at the sight of blurring hands and how the chestnuts were launched from the fire. "Damn it!" Xander yelled in anger. He didn't have the precision, hand-eye, as well as speed of closing his hands. He pulled some more chestnuts out of his right pocket and dumped them in the crackling fire.

Xander did again, now missing the chestnuts all together. Then again, and this time he had them. He began to smile and then screamed out in pain. "Damn it! Damn it!" he cursed, more people joined, watching in astonishment at Xander's display. "But almost had it!" Xander said with a grin. "Just a bit more practice." He did it again and once again screamed in pain. Then again, and again. "Damn it!" he yelled. Why didn't it work? It should work, and he tried again, screamed again.

"Xander!" Willow called out in urgency.

"Don't interrupt me, I almost got it," Xander said with determination.

"Your bandages!" Willow called and Xander decided to take a look. There was nothing wrong wit his bandages, what was Willow's deal? Willow came over, grabbed his wrists and turn his palms up, looking in shock, at dark spots on his palms. "They're not burning, Xander," she told him, and then looked up. "You kept the hot chestnuts in your hand."

Xander's eyes widened in revelation. He picked up the chestnuts he had dropped to the ground, and dumped them all in. With a yell he pulled them from the fire, and this time dropped them immediately once they were out. Nothing! Xander laughed! He'd done it, he'd mastered it! "That witch is going down!" Xander screamed eagerly, and then ran and jumped on the roof and disappeared. Buffy and Willow looked at each other in surprise for a few moments, and then ran as well, Buffy holding Willow tightly as she used her raw Slayer strength to jump them both up on the roof as well.

-----

Xander slammed the door of the restaurant open, and looked at Deo with blazing eyes. The Amazon had turned her head and taken Xander in with some surprise. "You're going down, demon bitch," he told her with a growl. The customers looked astonished.

Xander jumped forward, and snatched at the flask around Deo's neck. The woman just laughed as he missed. Xander looked at his hands and at the missing Deo. "Aargh!" he roared and jumped over the counter, finding a hole where Deo had just stood. "That . . .!" Xander jumped down the hole and found himself in the pitch darkness of the Sunnydale catacombs. "Come out, come out wherever you are!" Xander called, bristling.

There was some light, and Xander blinked. With a roar a dragon came at him from the darkness, framed by a giant monkey, and a giant spider with red eyes and scarily big fangs. Xander froze for a moment, and then grunted, charging right at, and then through them. "I knew it, just a special effect," Xander hissed and looked around. He found a small side-corridor and quickly went inside, finding Deo at a kettle from which smoke rose, images of monsters in the smoke.

Deo looked at him, and said in surprise, "Wow, even the great emperor Kuan Yin was scared to death of that one."

With a roar Xander went forward and crashed the pot to the ground. Now that no more black and light smoke was added to the mass of smoke, it slowly cleared, revealing torches and light returned to the room. Xander said angrily, "I'm American! I'm a Science Fiction fan and proud of it! We've got Hollywood and FUCKING DAVID COPPERFIELD! Did you think a few special effects were going to fool me!!"

"Eh, well," Deo said and then bolted down another corridor. "I'm not beaten yet, son in law."

"Aargh! Get back here!" Xander yelled and ran after her, soon losing her. "Damn it!" Xander chose one corridor of three he could choose from and ran down it.

-----

A catacomb room. Three ways in and out, two of them opposite the other. Air imploded into itself, shimmering with heat, a meter above the ground. An electric spark came from the small whole the implosion had created and sizzled against the ground. A bigger spark, easily a good sized bolt followed. The implosion point started to glow bright white and then grew and grew. One side of the sphere encountered the rock at the right corner of the one entrance way, and it melted right there. Orange lava flowed around the sphere as it grew and completely disintegrated the rock and lava that couldn't get away. Sand on the ground melted and then solidified into glass. More bolts of energy arched from the center of the sphere, striking a few random parts, one destroyed a rock.

Finally the sphere reached a diameter of two meters and then disappeared just like that, leaving a muscular, kneeling man, fists next to his body. On of his legs was knelt down, the other was on the sole of his feet. His hair was in spikes. He stood up; smoothly, like water, like a well-oiled machine. His face was a little elongated, and completely expressionless, dead, yet intelligent eyes. The man took a look around, stepped out of the indentation of glass, and stood still in the middle of the corridor entrance, knowing it was a well-defensible position.

Through his eyes, everything is red, and letters, numbers, signs and schematics zip across the image. 'Initial self-diagnostic.' Different messages kept rolling across it, but they didn't mean much to the male machine. They were really only there so whoever designed it could see if everything worked okay, if he, she or it chose to do so. A picture settled in the right, high corner. 'Primary target confirmed: John Connor,' appeared on the screen for a moment. Then 'Terminate.'

'Appropriate suitable clothing,' was the next sentence when a young man appeared from the right corridor across from it. Its audible sense heard, "Get out of my way!"

A moment later the young man stopped in front of him, taking him in. "What the . . .? Naked?" the young man spoke as schematic lines overlaid the young man's lower legs, then upper legs, and so up until all of its body and clothing were scanned.

'Match,' appeared on the screen. "Give me your clothes," the naked man or machine stated with a dispassionate tone.

"What!? Give . . .!?" the young man stated, and then added, "What kind of pervert are you!?"

"Give me your clothes," the naked machine stated, getting ready to do something drastic.

The young man than muttered words it didn't understand, "No chi?" The young man then roared and brought his fist back, yelling, "I said, 'GET OUT OF MY WAY!'" To the machine's surprise the man's fist crashed right into, and then through his chest. He pulled his fist back, pulling some wiring along. With a roar the young man then jumped up and kicked out twisting around his own axis. Unable to grasp how it happened, the machine still immediately knew it was decapitated. Connections with power sources in the body were severed, the chip inside the head switching to an emergency battery that wouldn't last much more than a few seconds. The machine could see its own body as both it, and the body dropped down. The head crashed on the glass, and that was very visible to the machine. It rolled onto the sand bottom of the corridor, turned the opposite direction to where it was facing earlier. It could see the back of the young man as he ran onward, and heard him growl out loud, "STUPID PERVERTED SEXBOT!!" Than its power fully failed and all went dark.

-----

A minute later Xander arrived in a large cavern, and he looked around, shocked. It was filled with water, cold water judging from the cool air coming at him. Luckily not yet cool enough to trigger his reaction. In the middle of the cool lake sat Deo on a small rock. Several more small rocks just peeked over the water.

"Well, that took you long enough, got the wrong path I see," Deo mocked him with a grin. "So what are you going to do? Just stand there, or will you come get it?" She grabbed the flask and wiggled it around.

Xander growled, and said, "Get ready to go down, devil woman! Here I come!" Xander then ran with all his speed, perfectly stepping onto the rocks, roaring out.

Deo grinned, and readied herself, then moved forward. She met Xander's Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire with her own, blocking each of his hits. Xander jumped back, looking at a smiling Deo. "You don't think it was going to be easy, did you?" Deo asked, both of them standing on a rock.

"Hmm, I expected it to be more difficult," Xander said, and then ran forward, and jumped high up and over Deo to her other side. Deo's eyes widened and grinned as she twisted around. With a roar and a well-aimed kick, she sent one rock spinning away, crashing into another rock and it too was shot away. Xander would never make it to any other rock with the strength he put in that jump; he'd fall into the water. Xander roared as he fell down right at Deo, who grinned at him. "Chestnuts roasting on an Open fire!" Xander roared and his hands turned to blurs.

Deo's eyes widened in mild surprise, part of her hadn't wanted to believe he had the stamina and chi to pull it off multiple times in a row. She once again blocked his hits and watched him crash into the water. That would be the end of it, except suddenly he jumped at her with a roar, left foot first and he crashed in her stomach taken by surprise. Her eyes went down in disbelief as Xander continued his motions. There she saw cracked rock ground with indentations of fists in it in a circle of water that closed back over it. Still shocked and dazed over what Xander had done and his kick to her stomach, she couldn't block his next kick. Xander twisted on his axis while flying up, way up as his right kick to her chin connected and pulled Deo along. Both were high up in the cavern as both turned further to face each other. "And another Chestnuts!" Xander yelled and attacked. Once again Deo matched him blow for blow and let the pressure of the blows fly her backward. She landed smoothly on a rock as did Xander.

"Incredible from such a young one, you used the air pressure of the force your blows to push aside the cold water," Deo said with a wide grin of admiration. "Too bad you still don't have the antidote."

"You think?" Xander said and jumped one rock forward. He held out his right hand, and the flask and necklace fell into it and he caught it, grinning widely.

Deo's eyes widened in shock an felt around her neck. Her eyes widened in revelation, saying, "That second Chestnuts was just to put distract me and get me to put distance between us. You already removed the flask from my neck with that second kick." Xander nodded as he flashed teeth with an even great triumphant grin. He then screwed open the flask and gulped the liquid inside it down; it tasted like warm water.

"Ah!" Xander said with a grin. "There, I win!" He reached down into the water, splashing it around to show his victory. "COLD!" he yelled, turning blue, teeth starting to shudder and clatter teeth. "Cold!" he screamed again and then ran forward with all his willpower. It would not do to fall over in the water. He jumped and just barely made to the solid ground, where he lay shuddering. "How? I won? Antidote?"

"Warm water," Deo told him with a big grin that made her look sexy. "I left the real antidote in the kitchen, just in case."

"You bitch!" Xander said through chattering teeth. "You cheating, demon witch!" Deo laughed.

"God! Xander really just won, did you see that! What a move!" Buffy's voice sounded from one of the entrance ways to the larger cave room. A shivering Xander and a surprised Deo watched as Willow, Buffy, and Lotion stood there, and had apparently been watching.

"Yeah," Willow answered and then the three girls rushed over to Xander, kneeling down by him.

"Brought real antidote," Lotion said triumphantly, at a slowly regaining color Xander. Deo sighed theatrically in defeat, as Buffy pulled out another flask and handed it over to Xander.

"Huh? It's empty," Xander said feeling the flask and shaking it, feeling something inside.

"Antidote inside," Lotion assured him, looking with twinkling eyes.

Xander got up and unscrewed the flask, pulling out a small piece of paper. "It's in CHINESE!" Xander roared out in anger. He had been learning some Japanese with Genma and Ranma, but not Chinese.

Deo nodded evilly, and said, "Yep, that contains the way you need to mold your chi to get rid of the condition. Even if you could read it, it would take you at least a decade to learn it! Now, I can teach you, or use my own chi to cure you, but for that, you'd have to marry Lotion first."

Everyone glared at the shrewd witch. "Hmm," Lotion said angrily. "Mom not play fair. Xander better than any man already, husband earned it. I not gone through similar ordeal. I translate." Lotion then did exactly that, translating the text out loud, and Deo gave an annoyed snort.

When Lotion was done, Deo said, "You still can't learn it." Her eyes then widened as Xander sank through his legs a bit, and then brought his right hand up. His thumb was pointing to himself, his middle and index finger up, his last two fingers curled down. He closed his eyes and concentrated, bringing his left fist against the palm of his right. Buffy, and Willow held their breath, watching. Slowly Xander's chi started glowing blue around him. Then his chi at his pelvic bone flared, making a twist around his body and then it died down to a dull glow again before Xander let himself completely go. Xander then walked over to the water and put his right hand in, grinning, then letting himself fall in. He laughed as she got back up. Lexa stood, wet clothes clinging to every curve of her body.

"Jusenkyo spring great curse," Lotion muttered as Buffy and Willow watched. Willow let her eyes glide over the near naked form of Lexa. The green, tight shirt with buttons that left Lexa's arms bare, hadn't gone quite see-through, but it might as well have been. Every detail of her bare cleavage, and her breasts and even nipples could be seen in the wet shirt that clung everywhere, as if it had sucked itself against Lexa's body. Willow swallowed and felt a stirring she hadn't expected inside of her, shocked at the full realization: Lexa was hot! Xander hot!

"I win!" Lexa screamed in anger, and then walked over to his friends. He turned back and finished, "Get it yet!? You and you're stupid daughter can take the next flight to China and start tying up your men again for all I care! We're done! Let's go guys."

"All right, Xander," Buffy said, still somewhat impressed with the battle she had witnessed. The speed and precision that Xander and Deo had showed was beyond her at this point. But soon . . . soon she would spar with Xander at his level she vowed. Her chances of survival would be boosted enormously; she hadn't ever thought stuff like that was possible, even for a Slayer.

Deo put an arm around her down daughter's shoulders, watching Lexa and her friends go, and said, "What a man. If I weren't already married . . ."

"Mother!" Lotion admonished sadly.

Deo hugged Lotion closer and said, "Don't worry, you may appear less then smart to him with your speech, but we're sending you to school for that aren't we? That will soon be rectified, sweety, and he's going to be mightily surprised when he thinks we're done. Time to play it his way, my daughter." Lotion nodded.

Further into corridor on their way back, Willow said with a huge grin, "You were great, you were incredible, Xander."

Lexa grinned and then her face fell, and whimpered, "Can you exchange the bandages, Willow!? The wet ones burn! Ouch! You got more ointment right! Please?" Willow and Buffy shook their heads, then Willow nodded reassuringly.


	8. part 8

Willow came out in the Summers garden, where Joyce had said Buffy was. "Hey, Buffy," Willow greeted and then suddenly stopped looking at what Buffy was doing. There was a pile of wood, some paper, and Buffy was holding match sticks. "What are you doing?" she asked confused.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" Buffy asked lighting the paper, and a few moments later there was a nice fire.

"Building a fire?" Willow wondered dumbfounded.

"No, I'm roasting chestnuts," Buffy said, opening the plastic bag leaning against the tree that Willow only now noticed. Willow watched with wide eyes as Buffy dumped the chestnuts in the fire. "On an open fire, to be precise," Buffy said and grabbed for the chestnuts with all the speed she got.

"Butbutbutbutbut . . .!" Willow yelled, waving her hands helplessly.

"OW, AAH!" Buffy yelled out, dropping the chestnuts, then blowing on her burned hands. "Damn, that hurts!"

"Well, duh! Are you crazy, Buffy!? Does this mean I have to bandage your hands too!?" Willow screamed almost hysterically.

"Well, thank you for the concern, Willow, I'll try not to impose on your time by forcing you to make bandages," Buffy told her, holding up her burned hands, ready to try again. "Besides, not to worry, Slayer healing here, I'll be fine after at most a night of sleep."

"You know what I mean!" Willow screeched in horror as Buffy yelled out in pain again.

Buffy blew on her hands again, and said, "Willow, if Xander can do this, so can I. Super battle Slayer instincts here, remember?"

"But, but, couldn't you at least let Xander train you!?" Willow asked in fear and horror. "Remember his whole 'eureka' moment in class. There's some trick to it. At least let him tell you what the trick is!"

"And let him know I'll soon be kicking his ass? I want him to be surprised in that sparring match, Willow, gives me another edge," Buffy told her and went again, yelling in pain as the fire licked and blistered the skin of her hands.

"But, eh, ah," Willow gave up and let herself slump to her ass, and then fall back arms wide outstretched. "Just great, really just great. I'm friends with exactly two girls, one is a guy transformed by an ancient curse, and the other is a mystical warrior with enough added testosterone she might as well be a guy. Can't I have just one _/girl/_ friend?"

"OUCH!" Buffy yelled out putting the chestnuts away.

"Uhm, Buffy?" Willow asked her friend, sitting back up. "Have you thought up what you're going to tell your mom about having burned and/or bandaged hands?"

Buffy looked at Willow, blinked, and then muttered, "I knew I forgot something."

Willow threw up her hands in helplessness and said, "You and Xander are equally stupid! If I wasn't interested in him myself, I'd set you two up on a date!" Buffy looked perturbed at the insult, and looked at her hands; they hurt and had even more blisters.

"I'm going to figure it out, you just wait and see," Buffy said with determination. She was the one supposed to be protecting them, not the other way around after all. Then Buffy tried again, crying out in pain.

"Ugh, hello, Buffy? Best friend here wanting girl talk? You got time for me?" Willow asked, fed up with all the testosterone around her.

"Huh? Oh, you could have said something," Buffy accused perkily.

Willow's eyelids came down, and said, "Oh, yeah, I came over to stare at you burning your hands, that's so much fun."

"Sorry," Buffy said and looked at the fire and the chestnuts inside.

"Buffy!" her mother's voice called from inside the house, "Did you get hurt? Did I hear you yell?"

"Nothing, mom! Just bumped my toe!" Buffy yelled into the house. She grabbed the bucket of water she had prepared earlier, wincing at the pain in her hands and poured the water until the fire was fully out.

"Oh, okay!" Joyce Summers called from inside.

"Ow, burned hands really hurt," Buffy pouted, looking at her hands. Willow sighed and opened her bag, bringing out the cream she had made in large quantities enough for Xander until his hands finished healing. Sighing she started applying it to Buffy's hands, who winced at her first, and then relaxed. "Hey, this feels good," Buffy said with grateful eyes. Willow sighed again. "Thank you, and sorry for not noticing you needing girl talk," Buffy said guiltily.

"Yes, well, let's just get to your room without your mother noticing," Willow said half-defeated.

"I'll jump, you hurry through the house," Buffy said as Willow finished applying the cream.

A few minutes later Buffy was sitting on her bed, and Willow was fidgeting on her chair: the big moment of truth. "I-I've got a confession to make," Willow said feeling ready to start hyperventilating. "A big one. Please don't end our friendship."

"Huh?" Buffy asked experimenting with her burned hands. "What kind of confession could make you think I'll stop being your friend?"

Willow looked at Buffy then got up out of the chair and started to nervously pace around. Buffy followed her with her head. Finally Willow stopped, took another deep breath, and said, "I think Lexa is hot."

Buffy blinked in confusion, and then said, "And? I think she's hot too. Hell, we both kind of agreed to that the moment we saw her."

Willow looked at Buffy, at first she was shocked at Buffy's casual admission, and then realized that Buffy didn't get it. "No, no, no!" Willow told her friend. "Not 'hot' as in I'd-like-to-have-even-half-her-looks hot, but 'hot' as in I'd-like-to-make-her-mine,-I-want-to-ravage-those-breasts-I've-got-a-crush hot, as in 'Xander' hot, or 'Angel' hot." Willow then shut up, realizing she was babbling again, and slumped, looking at Buffy. She felt ashamed, and hoped Buffy didn't kick her out. The Slayer on her part just start at Willow in disbelief.

Finally the blonde managed a response, "Oh." She looked at herself, and then she said, "Oh, my . . . you didn't . . . you're not . . . you're not getting turned on every time we touch, or sit next to each other, do you? 'Cause that's just, eeew."

"Oh . . ." Willow said her eyes glazing over, looking down at her feet, ". . . no . . ."

"Oh, Willow, no!" Buffy said feeling guilty, and horrible at Willow's plainly hurt feelings. She hesitated a moment and then grabbed her friend - hurting her hands, but not caring - and pulled her down upon her lap. She hugged Willow close, and she said, "Don't worry, Will. Still your best friend, you're not ew, nor are your feelings, I just . . . well, don't swing that way, okay? I was a bit . . . you know . . . taken aback at a girl possibly for me, but not girl-girl in general, okay? Get it? Please, don't be sad."

"Really?" Willow asked. "You're not disgusted with me?"

"Nah, you're my, Will. So you don't think I'm . . ." Buffy seemed a bit sad.

"Oh, no, Buffy, I just haven't thought of you like that, I'm sure if I . . ." Willow protested and took Buffy in, letting her eyes glide over her face and down her body, feeling the Slayer's thighs against her buttocks. "Now that you mention it, you look good, sexy even, I can definitely see what Xander sees in you . . ." Buffy perked up at Willow's compliments. The witch went on, "In fact perhaps tonight I should . . ."

"Okay, okay, okay!" Buffy interrupted suddenly. "Information overload. Just keep your naughtier thoughts to yourself, okay, Will?" Willow nodded, and smiled embarrassed. "Wow, I've got a lesbian for a best friend, that's actually pretty cool now that I think about it," Buffy said, allowing her hopes for Xander rise just a bit, immediately followed by crushing guilt over Angel. Where was the souled vampire anyway? Perhaps she should look _/him/_ up instead of waiting for him. Willow looked down suddenly, pained even. "What?" Buffy asked confused.

"You don't get it, you haven't heard the real freaky part," Willow said, the pain radiating from her.

"Huh?" Buffy prompted.

Willow looked up and in Buffy's eyes, and said, "I don't think I'm lesbian, or perhaps I am. It isn't like - who cares about guys, now, you know? I did say 'Xander' hot, and 'Angel' hot, didn't I? Cause Xander? Yummy. Still is, in fact, I've noticed a few other guys since my revelation - and I was watching Baywatch the other night too - and they're still hotter than hot, although none can compare with Xander. God, I got it bad. Anyway, I've seen the girls on Baywatch too, and damn it's really distracting watching that when you notice both the guys and girls, and . . ."

"Hold the babble, Will, I think I get the idea," Buffy said raising a hand, thinking deeply. Willow looked down ashamed.

"Am I a freak?" Willow asked her best friend, her eyes filled with uncertainty.

Buffy hugged the redhead closer, and after a moment asked, "Why do you think that?"

"You can't like both, can I? Shouldn't I be making a choice? I don't want to eat from both sides, and such, and helping the repression of gays, and . . ." Willow ran out of steam, slumping against her friend.

"Will," Buffy said, feeling for her friend, and realizing she didn't mind one bit. She hugged the newly bi-sexual girl closer, and once again finding she didn't mind if Willow enjoyed a hug from her friend a little too much. Willow looked back into Buffy's eyes again. "It's obvious to me you don't repress gay people, and you don't _/want/_ to appear like that, so you're not working to appear straight for the whole 'how it is now', so . . . you just like both genders, I guess."

Willow stayed silent for a few seconds, and then tested out, "I'm bisexual, and being bi is not evil people playing both gays and straight to harm either or both?"

Buffy nodded, and said, "Exactly. You know, 'I am woman hear me . . .' Now you," Buffy gestured to Willow.

"I am bi, hear me roar?" Willow asked with a grin, Buffy grinned back. "I'm bi, hear me roar!" Willow said again with more certainty. "That feels good," Willow said and then slumped gratefully against her friend. Buffy hugged her back, realizing just how lucky she really had gotten with such friends, Xander included, even though he wasn't here to join the friend hug. Willow's eyes suddenly widened when she realized something. "I'm Xander's perfect woman!" Willow exclaimed and then got up. Buffy looked at her in confusion. "Think about it, Buffy, I'm in love with and lust after both his male and female side! He and I can do _/everything/_ together," Willow said, nodding with bigger in confidence. "That's right, Xander's already mine! The other bitches have already lost, they just don't know it yet!" Willow said, eyes sparkling in triumph, right hand in a triumphant fist above her head.

"Uhm, 'other bitches', doesn't that make you . . ." Buffy asked somewhat in wonder.

"Buffy, I'm basking in triumph here," Willow said, looking at Buffy with a little annoyance.

"Oh, sorry," Buffy said and then gestured for Willow to go on, "bask away!"

Willow nodded in triumph again, and said, "Now all I have to do, is tell Xander I like both his sides, and he's mine, now I only have to do it tactfully enough he won't run away screaming . . . that's going to be the hard part . . ." Buffy grinned encouragingly.

-----

Xander walked into the library. It had been a week now since he'd said he'd get Buffy to train with him. And he was ready. Suddenly his eyes widened when he saw Cordelia in a skimpy workout outfit training in the middle of the library.

"Oh, hi, Xan," Cordelia said innocently.

"What are you doing?" Xander asked dumbfounded walking slowly over to her.

"Training martial arts, can't you see?" Cordelia asked innocently.

"That's nice, but why?" Xander asked.

Cordelia looked at him oddly, sighed and said, "Sometimes . . . Xander - dweeb - there are vampires about, and all manner of other nasties."

Xander shook his head. How the hell Cordelia managed to call him 'dweeb' so seductively was beyond him. "Yes," he said exasperated, "but that didn't make you train before."

Cordelia smiled at him, saying, "Can't a girl wizen up?"

"I believe," Giles stated imperiously, "Cordelia's words were, 'I cannot get Xander if I can't defeat my competition in combat', or something along those lines, and she's here to demonstrate."

Cordelia twisted her head to Giles, as Xander grabbed his forehead in disbelief. "Why did you have to say that, you old goat!?" Cordelia exclaimed extremely piqued.

Jenny who stood next to Giles said, "I believe because you said you were going to train at a dojo, not hog the library where he has to train his charge, and he wants you out."

"I beg your pardon?" Giles said calmly, as Xander continued shaking his head in disbelief.

"Don't worry, sweetheart, the direct route is the most effective with Americans, I'll translate for you," Jenny said sweetly, tapping his upper arm affectionately.

"Why I outta . . .?" Cordelia said extremely insulted, then almost stomped out of the library.

Willow and Buffy entered the library at that time, and looked surprised as Cordelia stalked out of the library. "Okay, what are we going to do today, Giles?" Buffy asked as she came down the steps.

Willow, holding a glass of water, followed Buffy, and once the Slayer veered off toward the counter and her watcher, the redhead stumbled and 'accidentally' let the water fly, splashing directly onto Xander. "Oops! I'm sorry, Xan, uh, Lexa," Willow managed, quite a good bit of acting.

"Oh, brother," Xander muttered as he took in his female form.

Everyone looked at the spectacle, and Willow walked over to the tall girl. She looked up at Xander / Lexa and said softly, "You look really good, Lexa, _/really/_ good, get it?"

Willow then walked over to the office, ready to change clothes. Lexa remained behind confused. "Ah, well, yes," Giles started, confused at Willow's display, "today Xander has something planned, and, uh, no buts, today you do as he says." Buffy glared at him, but then stalked into his office to change in her workout outfit as well.

A few moments later Buffy and Willow returned back to the library in their tight and becoming workout clothes. "Okay, oh, grate martial arts mistress, this is one time only, what is it?" Buffy asked Lexa with some annoyance, what did this non mystical chosen think he could teach her? Willow nodded, agreeing with the question if not the sentiment. Willow knew Xander had told he'd get Buffy to let him train her, and wondered how he was going to pull it off. Willow looked at Buffy's hands folded across her chest, and back at Lexa's's still lightly bandaged hands. One night had past, and Buffy's hands were already fine, she wished for Xander . . . Lexa . . . having equally mystically healing capacity.

"Okay, as you know, I've taught Willow Hapkido every day in the past week," Lexa stated with a smile, looking at the two girls. "Today we're going to test it by having you two spar."

"WHAT!?" Giles, Buffy, and Willow exclaimed. Jenny just looked stricken.

Lexa nodded, and hopped onto the table. She looked at the two girls, and said, "Go on! Oh, and one more thing, Buff, Willow is going to kick your ass if you hold back."

Everyone looked at Lexa like she was insane, then Buffy got determined, which is something Willow noticed and she swallowed nervously. "Are you crazy, Xander Harris?" Giles asked in shock.

Lexa shook her head and gestured at the two girls. "Willow, don't be nervous, just do as I told you, don't think about it, just do it," Lexa said with a smile. Willow swallowed and went into a battle stance. Then Lexa gestured for Buffy to begin the attack.

Buffy threw a devastating punch, and Willow's flat palm hit the Slayer's wrist while she quickly backed away, to Buffy's surprise parrying the blow. Buffy followed up with a kick that Willow dodged rapidly and backed away to her right. Buffy turned around, and threw another punch. Willow's eyes widened in surprise when she saw the huge opening, and her hands and legs moved almost of their own accord. She grabbed Buffy's wrist with her left hand, and Buffy's elbow with the other while suddenly moving forward and twisting underneath the arm. To both Buffy's and Willow's shock, the Slayer's momentum kept going and a moment later Willow was to Buffy's side. The Slayer's arm was bent back, all straight line, and Willow quickly grabbed Buffy's hand and twisted it up and backward. "Aah!" Buffy exclaimed and tried to yank her hand free. Instead Willow twisted around her own axis, forcing Buffy to move along, especially since it threatened to move arm and wrist to the breaking point. Willow grinned, and yanked Buffy's arm forward twisting it some. "Ah, ouch! Aargh, Willow stop!" Buffy exclaimed, trying with her left arm to dislodge Willow's grip, but every time she came close Willow twisted away, forcing Buffy along and cause her more pain.

Giles looked in surprise at the spectacle, as the diminutive redhead had the mystical Slayer perfectly under control. "Aargh! Aah! Damn it, Willow let me go!" Buffy exclaimed in quite some pain.

Willow bent Buffy's pinky back eliciting more yells of pain, and Willow said, "Sorry, Buffy, but I haven't heard the magic word."

"Please! Uncle! Let me go, please, auntie Willow, mistress Willow, just let me go!" Buffy yelled.

"Ok," Willow said, and casually let go mid another spin.

Buffy was flung away from Willow. The Slayer didn't fly, but she did stumble helplessly backward until she crashed against the stairs to the second level of the library and dropped painfully to her butt. "OUCH!" Buffy exclaimed, quickly got up, and while jumping a bit, started to rub her ass. "Tail bone, tail bone!" she said painfully.

Lexa laughed, and Jenny and Willow joined in. Buffy got herself someone under control and glared at them. Giles blurted out, "But that's not possible, you can't train someone for a weak and have them beat someone far stronger who has been training for a few years!"

Lexa grinned, and answered, "Oh, you can. You can train someone for a week to fight one specific person. Repeat the counters to that person's moves so much they become ingrained, and voila. Especially if that person isn't particular skilled, and doesn't know many different styles of fighting. Buffy is mostly a brawler, raw strength and speed is what she relies on. I've fought along side Buffy for months now, and sparred with her last time, I know what she does, how she fights, so I prepared Willow specifically for Buffy. Now if she fights someone else, like say a vampire, Willow is going to get her ass kicked, but Buffy she can defeat."

"Oh," Willow said a little less triumphant now, and Lexa grinned at her. They watched a very deflated Buffy still rub her ass gingerly.

"I'm going to have to detrain some of the stuff I trained you, Willow, then do a proper rounded Hapkido training," Lexa said with a grin, and Willow grinned back sexily, making Lexa look surprised. She quickly turned to Buffy, and asked, "So, Buffy, about me _/not/_ training you?"

Buffy looked at Lexa bungling her legs, and then at the redhead, still shocked at the easy defeat. She looked back at Lexa determined and said, "Okay, I can admit when I'm wrong; I'd be stupid with such overwhelming proof. Will you still train me, Xander?"

Lexa grinned, and nodded. She jumped off the table, and said, "Let's start with the basics of chi. I'm going to teach you a few motions that I'd like you to repeat often, while you do that, I'll start on giving Willow proper training. Sorry, if I have to divide my attentions between you, ok?" The girls nodded demurely, then at Lexa's sadistic grin they realized they were in for one hell of a ride.

Half an hour later getting a little uncomfortable under Willow's seemingly innocent innuendos and stares at her female body, Lexa decided to go back to Buffy and put some more pointers in with her. After putting Buffy through to a few exercises she had mustered up the courage to ask, "Do you know what's going on with, Willow?"

"Oh," Buffy answered softly. Damn Willow was smart, and she deserved Xander, Willow was right, she was perfect for Xander. "She figured out she was bi-sexual. She didn't really know it before, but since she had a crush on you, and you became a girl, she could look at you the same she looked at your male form you know? Instead of going with the expectation she had to be with a guy. So there were some tiny signs, but when you came out of the water after you beat Deo with the whole wet look, shirt clinging to your breasts, it was one big bang into full realization of her interest in girls, but since her interest in boys didn't go away . .." Buffy shrugged, and finished still softly, ". . . bi, had ourselves a big girl confession about it, so don't tell her I told you, let her confess to you on your own okay?"

"Uh?" Lexa said dumbfounded. Willow? _/His/_ Willow? Bi?

"Xander, now that you mention it," Buffy said, feeling her heart beat in her throat. Damn how a being sold into slavery couldn't change a guy from great, and nice, and backup-material to the hunk-a-hunk of man flesh in front of her now. "That makes Willow kinda perfect for you doesn't she? I mean with the whole fully liking both your sides bit?"

Ah! God damn! No Buffy was trying to set _/him/_ up with _/Willow/_, while he wanted _/her/_. This was just his worst nightmare come to life, his heart ached with it. "I suppose," Lexa started dejectedly, "if I ask you out on a date you're going to tell me 'no' again, right?"

"I'm sorry, Xander," Buffy said in pain, _/really/_ in pain. She hoped Xander could get over his crush and see Willow for the hot and perfect girl for him she was.

Damn! Xander was planning on asking her out the next day. This required a change of tactics.

-----

The next day Xander met up with Buffy and Willow on the school lawn. "Hey, guys," he greeted with a smile. He considered himself and Buffy lucky at least that he had gotten the Slayer to stop her attempts at the Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire technique that Willow told him she was trying. He said she wasn't quite ready yet and that he would teach her once she was. Thankfully the Slayer had accepted that, for now at least.

"Hi, Xan," the girls greeted him, both pairs of eyes glittering with the sight of him.

"Hello, Xander, how are you today?" Cordelia asked as she came at him from his right. Xander's eyes widened and then looked around at a sexily-attired, friendly-looking Cordelia Chase.

"Uh, hi," Xander said, somewhat surprised. Apart from standard sexy clothes, she didn't seemed to be particularly interested in showing off, or going off on hysterics, or practically molesting him. Holy, moly, Cordelia Chase was trying to be nice and intelligent and basically a desired, _/mature/_ girl to get him interested? Perhaps he had dismissed her a little too quickly?

"Nihau! Xander!"

Xander moved as if he got a baseball bat on his head, and squinted his eyes shut in frustration. His two friends, and one pure suitor, gained dark looks at the girl coming up at his behind. Slowly and resentfully he turned around, coming face to face with the Amazonian attired girl which showed off her curves quite nicely. "Why aren't you and your mother back to China?" Xander asked with an almost defeated tone.

"Must wed future husband, keep hands of stick figures and uncaring bitch off of you," Lotion answered him with a bright smile, giving him a small respectful bow. Xander groaned as he heard the two Sunnydale natives and one LA born girl growl. Lotion either didn't care, or was completely oblivious, seeing the way she defeated Buffy, it was probably the first. "Also, prove to you I not stupid, so learn better English here at school, and other classes," Lotion added. Xander looked up at heaven and mumbled something in frustration. "Also, as you demanded, Lotion take future husband out on date, yes?" Lotion finished with a smile. The stares from the three other girls now became positively murderous, and seeing as they went straight through Xander's back targeted at Lotion, he was very much aware of them.

What in blazes was he going to do about this? He had worked on an all new seduce-Buffy strategy, now . . . Wait! Jealousy _/could/_ be added as one of the tools of the trade, and he had to admit: Lotion was hot! "Okay, I'll date you," Xander said, making Lotion smile brightly, and Willow, Buffy and Cordelia's jaws drop. Then their shoulders slumped seeing their chances dry up fast. "On several conditions," Xander added with authority in his tone.

"Conditions?" Lotion asked as the other three girls looked with curiosity.

"Conditions," Xander confirmed, nodding his head. "One: the way you feel about me, I do not yet feel about you, but I do feel like that about another girl." Lotion seemed sad, and Willow and Cordelia looked hatefully at Buffy who shrank in on herself. Xander simply continued, "There are more girls who feel like that about me, but I don't feel about them, so I might be going out on dates with them. You will not complain about this, you will not demand you should be the only one, I might even kiss them and you will not do anything to harm them, no 'Kisses of Death', no kicking their asses to get them away from them, not even idle threats to intimidate them. You will simply suck up your emotions and accept it, got that?" The other girls looked with renewed hope, and realized that the rule probably applied to them as well.

Lotion looked sadly at Xander, painfully even, it got to Xander; big, painful eye orbs of girls in distress always got to him, but forced his emotions down with all his might; he was not going to give up on his own happiness just because some Chinese Amazon had some traditions that were outdated and in the wrong country. Finally Lotion nodded, and said, "Condition accepted."

"Good, now the second one," Xander said sternly, and then smiled, he had been looking to a solution to training two women at different levels at the same time; this was the perfect opportunity to not only get that out of the way, but immediately force these damn girls to show each other some respect. "You will train Cordelia, and Buffy," he stated, making all the girls gasp.

Lotion said resolutely, "No, no will training my rivals."

"You heard me. You will, or you don't get a date," Xander stated with a grin. "There's no negotiating." Lotion lowered her head in defeat. Xander then continued, "I have to give Willow a proper rounded training, and first I have to remove a few thinks I ingrained in her, that only I know of. Once that's done, I can devote my time training Buffy and _/with/_ Buffy, and which time you will continue Willow's training that I started. Since she's also with Jenny . . ." Xander checked if no one could overhear, ". . . doing the whole magic thing, the first priority should be teaching her how to used her opponents' strengths and speeds against her, understand what I mean? Hapkido is what I started teaching her." Lotion nodded. Xander then finished, "In return you get the added bonus that once I'm done teaching Willow some basics, and start training Buffy, you can train with us on regular occasions if you want to; I for example could teach you the Chestnuts technique, which you don't seem to be able to do."

Lotion nodded, smiling at that last opportunity, "Condition two accepted."

"Now the final one," Xander said with a grin, once again checking around. "You know about Jusenkyo, you must now about the nasty things that go bump in the night. Well, this place is nasty central, the mouth of hell opens up in the library here. Whenever we need help, you and you're mom help. I'm expecting regular patrols of the cemeteries for the blood sucking kind."

Lotion's eyes widened, as did the others, and then Buffy's face went a little dark. "Final condition accepted," Lotion stated with a big grin. No vampire dared to come anywhere near the Amazon village, the few who knew about them were _/far/_ too scared, the few who didn't were dust in the wind.

"Great," Xander said with a smile, "We'll decide about day and time of the date later, okay? We have to get to class." Lotion nodded and then the whole group turned to the school.

Buffy went close to Xander, and she growled low, "Do you think I can't cut it, or something?"

Xander looked down at his love, wondering for a moment, and then answered softly, "You died a few months ago, and a vamp is probably not the nastiest thing on the planet; we need all the help we can get." Buffy looked up at him, and hated that he was probably right; the whole 'given the power to fight the forces of darkness' stuff was seriously overrated.

-----

Later that afternoon

The Californian sun burned on the beach. The ocean's quite warm water lazily washed on shore and flowed back. The young man climbed on shore quite exhausted. He stood up, completely naked. He turned around, and looked at the water, then up at the sun and smiled with relief. He looked at his massive back pack and umbrella strapped to it, which he had been pulling along.

He looked back around, far in the distance to judge where he was, completely missing surprised male faces and lots of drooling, and otherwise very excited faces of female beach goers. "Where am I now?" he asked in Japanese to no one in particular.

One Asian girl that had apparently also been taught Japanese, said, "Sunnydale, California, and you can join me right here, big boy." The boy looked down at her, licking her lips vicariously, and then he looked down at himself.

"EEK!" he exclaimed and covered himself up, then he quickly opened his back pack and put on his clothes, relieved a shelled out the extra money for the water proof model. Once in clothes he turned back to the now disappointed girl, and asked, "California?"

"Uh, United States of America?" she returned a little confused.

"AMERICA!?!?" the boy exclaimed in shock.

-----

Even later that day . . . okay night

The black car with blacked out windows crashed without regard through the 'Welcome to Sunnydale, Enjoy your stay', sign. The car came to a standstill, half on the grass of the middle part of the roundabout, half on the road. The door opened, and a guy in heavy boots, and long black duster got out. Correction, vampire, got out. He was vamped out, and his hair was bleached blonde, and with an impossible amount of gel, stiffly swept back. He took out a cigarette, brought it to his mouth, and lit it. He took a deep drag, let out the air, and then took a deep sniff of the air through his nose. "Ah, home sweet home," he said, and grinned.


	9. part 9

"Hello, Angel," Buffy said with a smile when the vampire's door opened.

"Oh, Buffy, hi," he answered dumbfounded. They stood there . . .

"Can I come in?" Buffy asked hopefully.

"Ah, yeah, of course," Angel said and gestured for Buffy to entered. Buffy smiled, and walked inside, feeling her heart beat faster. Angel was so sexy. Damn, how was it possible to have such strong feelings for two guys at the same time? She was a slut! A big ol' slutty slut! Angel was the guy for her! Right, keep thinking that. "So, uhm, I have no real information, well, apart that Saturday is St. Vigeous."

"Vigeous?" Buffy asked confused.

"Yeah, a big night for vampires, they like to band to gather and pillage everything in sight, happens about once in a decade," Angel explained nervously. The girl was so beautiful, but he shouldn't, shouldn't.

"I didn't come for business," Buffy told him, and wrapped her arms around his neck. She reached up, wanting to kiss him, but Angel put his hands at her waist and pushed her back. "What?"

"It's wrong," Angel told her with a guilty face. "We shouldn't . . . we won't . . ."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Buffy demanded angrily.

Angel made a gesture and then started talking, "You're seventeen, I'm a demon-animated corpse over two hundred and forty years old. You should be with a guy your age, and alive so you can enjoy dawn's, sunsets, and just plain the sun and daytime. Can take you to the beach, and- . . ."

"I don't care about all that!" Buffy exclaimed annoyed. "You sound like Xander and Giles on occasion! I only care about you!" She tried to hug him again, but he backed away.

"You should care about that," Angel said, looking at an angrier Buffy. "How about shopping? I can't take you to the mall."

Buffy halted for a moment, frowning, and then said, "There are malls that are open at night."

"Not in Sunnydale," Angel answered her.

"What are you saying!? Are you breaking up with me!?" Buffy asked, her eyes misting up with tears.

"I- I guess I am," Angel said heartbroken, feeling a brooding session coming on.

Buffy's careful control broke, and a tear slid from both her eyes down. "No, no you can't," Buffy muttered in shock.

"I'm sorry, but I've got to do the right thing here. You and I can't ever happen, it's wrong," Angel told her with pain in his voice. Buffy then turned around and ran out of his apartment, sobbing all the way. She ran all the way to Willow's house, and was moment later crying on her bed in her lap. Willow ran her hands through her friend's hair, comforting her.

-Stupid Angel!- Willow thought, comforting Buffy.

-----

"Faster, lazy ugly ones!" Lotion called in the back, small courtyard of her and her mothers house and restaurant. She casually walked rounds around it, overtaking Buffy and Cordelia with ease over and over. The two girls were exhausted, having run with weights - Buffy a lot more than Cordelia - for the past fifteen minutes, and the fighting-training exercises before that. Cordelia looked hatefully at Lotion, who added, "You want to be strong as Lotion, work harder!" Buffy was just sad.

"One of these days," Cordelia muttered as she found a way to continue running, determined to catch up someday soon with the Amazon.

Deo watched the seen with a grin, shaking her head. "Xander Harris," she muttered. "You _/will/_ be my son in law."

-----

"Just great, really just great," Buffy said as she came out of the school.

"What?" Lexa asked, in full seductress attire. Willow walked next her, ogled whenever she had the chance.

"Not only does Angel break up with me, now that troll Snyder has me and Sheila prepare the school for the parent-teacher night on Thursday," Buffy complained with a whiny voice. An instant later she got two girl hugs, and she sighed as she perked up. The two girls broke the hug. Buffy sighed again, and said, "Well, I guess Angel breaking up with me has one advantage; I can safely stay home and study for my French test, and not have to worry about Angel getting upset I'm not out on a date with him."

"Always look on the bright side, that's my motto, Buff," Lexa told her with a grin.

Buffy looked at her and said, "Easy for you to say, you've got three girls after you who want you badly; if I had three guys after me, I'd be in good spirits too."

"It's way overrated," Lexa told her, and Buffy looked skeptically.

Willow in the meantime perked up, "Three girls? Who's the third!?" Both of them looked at the redhead pointedly, and she blushed. "Okay, right, yes, I admit it. Lexa, I'm kind of bisexual; I th-think you're at-t-t-tractive. Okay, you're hot! Both yous that is! I w-w-w-want to b-b-b-be your girlfriend."

"I figured that one out already, Will," Lexa said sadly. Boy, Willow deserved better than to chase after a guy / girl / whatever that only saw her as a friend, because she knew what that was like. Perhaps she should set her up on a date or something?

"Willow, about the French studying . . ." Buffy began hopefully.

"Uh," Willow muttered. She knew French already, piece of cake. "I was kind of looking forward to a night at the bronze, Buffy."

"Will, tonight is my date with Lotion, you'll only torture yourself coming to the bronze, have nice girls' night in, okay?" Lexa suggested as tactfully as she could muster.

"Well, okay," Willow said sadly.

Buffy flung herself around Willow, and hugging her said, "Thanks, Willow, I will never forget it."

"Yeah, yeah, you're just taking advantage of my big brain and my gentle nature; we are still going on our shopping trip right?" Willow questioned her girl friends.

"Of course, can't do without the shopping!" Buffy said perking up, she need shopping to get rid of the Angel blues.

"Yep, I need some more outfits that look equally good on guys _/and/_ girls," Lexa answered them with a smile and then sighed. "I guess the whole trying out this shopping as a girl thing is going to have to wait." She looked down at herself and said, "If I have to change back and forth, I better not be in a skirt when I turn into a guy; I'm telling you, they look good on girls, but unless it's designed for guys - think kilt - it makes guys look ridiculous."

"Really? I think my chocolate milk is still warm, wanna test if there's enough water in it?" Willow suggested innocently.

"Don't you dare, Will," Lexa told her resolutely.

Buffy giggled, and said, "I'm blessed with you two as friends."

The three of them halted when they saw the guy with a big bush of red roses coming toward them. His blonde hair was done impeccably. He was dressed in brand new jeans, and a deep green blouse. He stepped up to them, and said, "Oh, pearl of my heart, beauty of all the oceans, please accept this token of my affection, and grant me - Deke Fisher, Sunnydale High's Red Streak Quarterback - the honor of a date."

The three girls looked shocked at his declaration, and Lexa tentatively asked, "Who exactly are you asking?"

"You of course, my dark goddess, great queen Lexa Horne," Deke intoned with shiny eyes.

Willow and Buffy giggled, while Lexa said with slumped eyes, "I'm gay, you fool."

"One date, fair Lexa, is all I ask, and I shall make you like men as well," Deke declared while a whole throng of students had gathered around to look at the spectacle.

"No," Lexa groaned out, and then turned around and ran, screaming, "AAAAH!!"

Willow looked with hateful eyes at the still kneeling Deke, and Buffy giggled. "Suitor number four," Buffy told Willow, gesturing to a now teary Deke, while more students laughed at him, but he apparently didn't care.

Willow growled, but that too didn't discourage Deke. The blonde guy with blue eyes stood up, grinned widely, almost triumphant, lifted his left arm into the air, and declared, "I shall make her love me!"

Willow walked forward and stepped on his toes. "OW!" he yelled out, and then, when Willow's arm hit his gut, "OOF!" Willow raised her chin high and walked onward as the football player jumped on one foot holding his stomach. Buffy giggled as she walked around him and joined her friend.

-----

"What do you guys think of this?" Xander asked holding up a sweater.

"Could work," Buffy said, appraising it with a critical eyes.

"Ok," Xander said pulling off his shirt without concern. Buffy's and Willow's eyes widened.

"You know, Willow, this half boy, half girl deal, I think I like it better than just boy Xander," Buffy muttered looking at Xander's chest, and looked a bit disappointed once the sweater was on.

"Uhuh," Willow nodded in answer. Willow took Xander in, showing the sweater, and she said, "Nah, too frilly for a guy."

"Yup," Buffy added. Sighing, Xander took the shirt back off, and put his own back on. He looked around, and a sales woman arrived.

"Can I help?" she asked the girls.

Her eyes widened when Xander answered, "Yeah, I'm looking for something a guy _/and/_ girl can where."

"Androgynous clothing," Willow supplied helpfully.

"Huh?" both Xander and Buffy said. Then Xander added, "Yeah, that."

"Okay," the sales woman said and a little uncertainly led them to another section of the women's clothing store.

-----

Cordelia watched silently, licking her lips as Xander and his two best friends left the women's store; holding a bag with two garments that fit his bill. "I cannot believe you have the hots for that loser Xander. Look at him, and that ridiculous top, he even _/buys/_ women's clothes," a voice sounded from behind her. Cordelia narrowed her eyes and turned around, looking at Harmony who had her hands superiorly in her sides. The rest of the sheep were behind her. "You know, Cordelia, just a week ago you were still our shining example. What a disappointment."

Cordelia's jaw dropped in disbelief. "Harmony, I can _/not/_ believe how stupid you are!" Cordelia hissed out hatefully at her faithful follower.

"Hey," Harmony commented but Cordelia continued undisturbed.

"Xander Harris has aside from me at least two girls chasing him for being the hottest guy around one of them came all the way from China, and a third that's just confused about leaving another boyfriend for him," she lectured superiorly. "He's a guy comfortable enough to go into a women's clothing store and pick out something he can wear just like women started doing before women's clothes were allowed to look like men's. He's the future, the true man comfortable with himself, and on top of that he's hot as hell. Don't tell me you fools have only watched what he's wearing; especially since that 'ridiculous' top leaves his arms bare. And what arms, all those masculine muscles, and those powerful legs in that tight jeans, not to mention that hot butt and those kissable lips on that handsome face. Hhhhhhh, he's the hottest guy in the entire US."

Harmony and co were drooling, eyes wide, now that the woman with a slightly bit more substance than 'what is he wearing' pointed out the obvious. "You're our hero, Cordelia," one of the Cordettes said. Cordelia nodded satisfactorily. Then the whole group surged forward, calling things like, "Xander!" "Go on a date with me!" "Xander!" "Date me!"

Cordelia was left behind dumbfounded, and then grabbed her forehead, telling herself, "Stupid! Stupid! Stupid! You did it again! Stop doing that! Don't tell anyone! Don't bother showing them your superiority, they'll find out sooner or later, damn it! At least I didn't tell them about the multiple orgasms!"

"He gives multiple orgasms too?" Cordelia's eyes widened in shock and then looked aside at a girl she didn't know. "Xander was his name, right? Okay, XANDER!" The girl then burst after the other group of girls, leaving a wide-eyed and slack-jawed Cordelia. The brunette then walked over to a wall and gently banged her head against it, and then again, and again.

-----

Xander was walking along and talking with Buffy and Willow when he felt a strange sensation of a bull's eye painted on his back. He frowned and turned around, his eyes shooting wide open in shock at the small stampede calling his name and more lewd things.

"Xander, run!" Willow suggested, as she and Buffy parted from his to keep from being waltzed right over. Xander nodded and ran, the girls right on his heels.

-----

"NO!" the boy screamed out in Japanese horror at a crossroads in the mall. Then in perfect English he exclaimed, "This is the fourth time in ten minutes I'm here! How do I get out of this place!!!" Apparently although his sense of direction was virtually non-existent, his brain made up for it with a very good grasp of languages, and English was one thing he had learned when he was still in school. His attire - green pants, furred boots tied with yellow and black ties, a grey-green strapped shirt, that left most of his shoulders and all of his arms bare, the yellow with black dots bandanna around his forehead, along with the big backpack on his back and the red folded umbrella in his right hand - gave him the look of a well-worn traveler.

"Ah, young man, let me help," a woman said, and pointed to his left. "Go down that way, take the first right, the second left, then again the first right, then straight on and you'll get to the exit."

"Thank you good woman," the boy said shaking her head in thanks. Then he turned 180 degrees around and walked resolutely to the next crossroads. The woman's eyes widened looking to her right where she had just pointed, and simply straight on where the boy was going. First she shook her head in disbelief, then her face squinted in anger thinking the boy was playing with her.

The boy however did _/not/_ toy with her, his sense of direction was simply that bad. He reached another crossroads, when he heard a voice, "Out of the way! Look out!"

"Hmm?" he wondered as he casually turned toward the shouting. He saw people parting ways as a guy came running straight for him, a throng of girls behind him. "This sounds and looks familiar," he said grabbing his chin in thought.

"SORRY!" the guy screamed and jumped up at him. The guy's right foot smashed right against his face and the boy keeled backward at the unexpected impact. "Really sorry!" the guy apologized yet again as the boy crashed on his back pack and his hand slammed against the ground. The boy groaned in pain.

"Xander! Date me! Come back to me, Xander!" a throng of voices called.

"AARGH!" the boy yelled in pain as about six girls some in high-heels crashed over him. "The humiliation," the boy slowly muttered, turning himself around to raise himself to his arms and legs.

"Wait up!" And another girl ran right over him, smashing his face back into the floor.

With a groan the boy once again raised himself up, shook his head and then turn his head to his left. The guy that had just ran over him had apparently made a circle and appeared from behind a store and pressed himself against a wall, looking around desperately for a better solution. The boy went fully to his feet and then looked with wide eyes as the guy dipped his hands in a cooled bucket of a window cleaner. The guy splashed the water in his face and turned into a girl. "_/Veryfamiliar/_," the boy hissed in hatred.

The throng of girls appeared and the now girl pointed, yelling, "He went that away!" The girls immediately went in the direction she pointed and she sighed in relieve.

"I knew I hear that voice before," the boy said, his free left hand in a faced, his eyes closed as he focused all his anger. Then he ran, straight at the girl, bringing up his umbrella with his right hand, screaming, "YOU BASTARD! STAND AND I SHALL KILL YOU!!"

-----

Lexa noticed the charging boy just in time. She jumped back and the umbrella crashed onto the marble floor . . . and straight through it, the marble splintered and flew up leaving an umbrella shaped hole. Whoever thought they should help the helpless girl being attacked, thought better of it after that display.

"What the hell is that for!?" Lexa screamed out loud, looking shocked at the broken floor, and how much power had to have been behind that blow. And realizing she probably shouldn't get hit by that umbrella.

"As if you don't know!" the boy hissed and stabbed the umbrella forward like a sword. Lexa sidestepped to the left and grabbed him tightly by his wrist.

"Hey, whatever I did, I'm sorry, okay? We don't need to hurt each other, right?" Lexa asked him with her most seductive voice.

"Do you think a 'sorry' is good enough for what you did to me!?" the boy yelled. He grabbed his umbrella with left hand, and at the same time moved his right hand forward, pushing Lexa back making her let go. **"I am Ryoga Hibiki!"** the boy yelled swinging his umbrella from left to right. Lexa ducked and the umbrella crashed straight through the wall of a bookstore, stone flying everywhere. **"And I shall _/kill/_ you for what you did to me!"** Ryoga yelled and lashed out again.

Lexa avoided the thrust and quickly turned around and ran, trying to think of a way to get rid of this guy without any bones, hers or Ryoga's, having to be broken. Ryoga meanwhile tripped over the bucket that had been moved by the force of his wall-destroying blow, and dropped to the floor, the water covering him. A moment later his clothes seemed to be empty, apart from a small bulge at the collar of his shirt. With several squeaks and oinks a small dark-brown piglet appeared from the collar. The eyes of the animal twisted in rage as it continued to squeak in indignation, the eyes boring in the retreating girl's back.

After a short while of not hearing Ryoga's threats, Lexa dared to look backward, and then stopped. She looked around, and asked herself, "Where did he go?" Then shrugged and turned back toward where Buffy and Willow would be waiting.

-----

Later that night in the bronze Xander and Lotion were dancing across from each other. Xander took in Lotion's attire in amazement. Her hair was still the same, long and full, with a few ribbons to give it a sense of femininity and naughtiness. The rest though was quite different. She wore one of her regular shirts, but it was cut short, offering a small slip of her luscious belly to the eyes, stopping just before her belly button. The top was cut as well, showing cleavage. Then she wore high heels, stockings or pantyhose, and finally a short leather skirt that reached halfway to her knees. Xander admired the view, and Lotion smiled seductively at him. When the music changed a bit, the Amazon stepped up, pressing her breasts seductively against Xander, her arms around his neck and started a slow dance. With her head on his shoulder, he placed his hands in the small of her back. Damn, this wasn't so bad, not at all. Xander smelled her hair, and it smelled good. If Buffy really was not to be for him . . . well, this girl might not even be considered second choice, she was right up there.

Across the room a bleached blonde guy looked around. There were a lot of girls that fit the annoying one's description. "Hmm."

"Xander," Lotion murmured contently. She could get used to this dating business she realized, smiling.

Next to them a bleached blonde guy arrived and said hastily, "Someone call 911, some guy is trying to bite a girl outside!"

Xander and Lotion parted a bit, looking stricken at each other, then they quickly sped outside. Indeed, once outside they found a screaming girl, and vamp trying to eat her. A moment later Lotion's fist rammed in his face and separated him from the girl, while Xander watched with an admiring grin, keeping anything from attacking her in the back. "Go to him," Lotion told the girl and pushed her toward Xander, who caught the intended victim and put her beside him.

"Slayer," the vampire said, wiping the blood from his mouth with a grin. Lotion looked confused. "You know, I won't wait until St. Vigeous, I'll simply kill you right now."

Lotion blinked, ducked beneath a swing and landed a punch to the vamp's gut, doubling him over. "OOF!" the vampire exclaimed with some shock at the force of the punch. "Spike, I need some help!" he then called out. Before any help arrived though, a knee crashed into his face, and a follow up uppercut sent him flying back until he crashed against the metal wall.

"Stake," Lotion called, and Xander pulled one from the coat he had hastily pulled along and tossed it over. A moment later the stake entered the vampire's heart, and he turned to dust, making his intended victim gasp once again. Xander turned the girl back toward the bronze.

There was a clapping, and then the figure of a bleached-blond, vamped out vampire in a long leather duster came out of the shadows; it was the same guy or rather vampire that had warned them inside earlier. "Well done, Slayer, well done," the guy - most likely 'Spike' - said with a cocky grin. "Not many Slayers can fight like you do. I see you've dyed your hair, wrong color according to me; not all of that matters much come Saturday."

"Huh? What's Saturday?" Lotion asked even more confused.

Spike gave a chuckle and as he walked away said, "Saturday is when I will kill you."

Lotion turned confused to Xander, and asked, "What is 'Slayer'?"

Xander smiled and said, "One girl in all the world chosen and given the power to fight the forces of darkness, yada, yada, yada. Giles can explain it better than I can; Buffy's the Slayer."

"Have not seen much of that power," Lotion commented remembering how easily she squashed aside the blonde with the ugly nose.

Xander shrugged, and said, "Whoever created the slayer so many thousands of years ago, couldn't have been very bright."

"Well, I look forward to Saturday. Shall hack of his limbs, and crush his balls several times before dusting," Lotion stated with conviction.

Xander laughed and slung his arm around her shoulders, much to Lotions delight. Then he told her, "I think I'm starting to like you, Lotion, if not as a girlfriend, most certainly as a friend."

-----

"The vampire called him 'Spike', you say?" Giles asked of Xander, who nodded. At the table Buffy and Willow were sitting, still studying for the French test. Giles stood behind them, Jenny sat across from Buffy and Willow, teaching Willow whenever the redhead left Buffy to her own devices in order to get her to learn something of her own. "Unorthodox name."

"Perhaps he's reformed, anyway, he thought Lotion was Buffy and told her he was going to kill her on Saturday; that was when this St. Vigeous deal started, right?" Xander commented from his lazy position in the chair.

"What!? He thought that cheap knock-off was me!?" Buffy exclaimed indignant. "The bleach must have fried his brain."

"Or the chemicals keeping his duster from going stale, then again perhaps it was going stale," Xander replied trying to remember if he smelled anything reeking.

"Hmm, perhaps he went under a different name in the past," Giles commented and took out another book to try and fight their mysterious new vampire.

Buffy sighed, got up, and said, "I'll go pour the punch. I'm punch girl."

"It looks pretty nice outside, Buffy, I'm sure you won't get expelled," Xander said helpfully and the Slayer gave him a dark look. He smiled and shrugged.

-----

A few minutes later Willow went out to check up on Buffy. "Hey, Buffy, how's it going? What taste did you decide on?"

"Oh, lemon, as in lemonade," Buffy said as she felt beaker after plastic beaker with yellow punch using a soup spoon.

"Cool, how much sugar did you use?" Willow asked as she picked up a beaker.

"Sugar?" Buffy asked as Willow took a sip. She squinted her face, and swallowed the sour liquid away with difficulty. "How does it taste?" Buffy asked.

"Great, delicious!" Willow answered, and put the beaker back down. "I'll go back to see if Jenny . . . right." Willow quickly walked back into the library, closing the doors behind her. "We need sugar, lots of it."

"Huh?" Jenny asked.

"Is there a sugar demon?" Xander asked confused.

"Yes, Buffy, she made lemonade without sugar," Willow answered making a face. "Come on, we need to help her before she gets expelled."

"Ah! There he is!" Giles exclaimed and everyone looked at him.

"The sugar demon?" Xander once again asked confused.

Giles looked at him, and then said, "Ah, no, William the Bloody, earned his nickname by torturing his victims with railroad spikes. This is good news, he's barely two hundred, not even as old as Angel."

"Lotion never seemed worried," Xander commented casually.

"Sugar!?" Willow asked. Jenny and Xander looked over at her.

"I'm sorry, Willow, but I think it's too late to go find sugar," Jenny commented looking at her watch.

"Oh," Giles suddenly said, and everyone looked over. "Spike has fought two slayers in the past century, and killed them both."

Willow and Jenny looked stricken. Xander shrugged and said, "He's going to be dust, I'll make sure I'm around Lotion Saturday, because I want to watch her take this vamp apart."

"Xander, he killed two slayers, and on Saint Vigeous he won't be coming alone," Giles said concerned.

Xander nodded, and added, "That's why I want to be there too; I'll dust his backup, so Lotion can take her time taking Captain Peroxide apart, you guys wanna help?"

"I'm in!" Willow said with a smile.

Xander angled his head back, and said, "Okay, we have to increase your training a bit before then."

-----

Later that evening the parents, some of whom brought their children arrived, among them Cordelia and her parents and Lotion and Deo. Xander's and Willow's parents characteristically didn't bother showing, so they had plenty of time to help out Buffy.

Joyce, Buffy's mother, arrived soon after, and looked with appreciation at Buffy's set up. "You did all this, Buffy?"

Buffy smiled at her mother, and said, "Well, I had help."

"It looks very good," Joyce said with a smile. "The punch looks good."

"Uh, Mrs. Summers," Willow quickly interjected stepping in front of the punch. "You should try the cookies first, that way you can appreciate the punch more later." Buffy looked a bit confused as Willow led her mother away from her delicious punch. When she spotted Snyder coming from a side corridor though, she quickly gave Willow a look. Buffy's mother finished a cookie, and Willow said, "Now let me take you on a tour of the school, you'll love it, let's start with the chemistry room."

"Okay, that sounds nice," Joyce said a little confused, but let herself be led away.

"Phew," Buffy said softly. Snyder arrived and he said, "Was that your mother, Buffy?"

"Yes, that was her, but she wouldn't have been much help, she doesn't understand a word of English," Buffy lied with a smile. Snyder narrowed his eyes and then turned away from her, gesturing she should continue making everyone happy.

"That was a close call," Cordelia commented as she came closer. "If Snyder talks to your mom . . . tenth highschool reunion? You'll still be grounded." Buffy looked at her with wide eyes.

A smiling Lotion had overheard the conversation, as her mother was off talking to some teacher about really nothing since she'd barely went to school here. Lotion than added, "What's different? Stick figure not get guys anyway."

Buffy looked hatefully at them when Xander arrived, smiled at his two suitors, and said, "Have some punch, girls." The two girls shrugged and went over to the table.

"Rewarding them?" Buffy asked Xander with a pout.

Xander grinned and pointed her to the table, and said, "What's a lemon, Buffy?"

"A fruit?" Buffy said with a confused face.

"The taste," Xander said with a little annoyance.

Buffy blinked and thought, then, "Sour?"

Xander grinned and nodded, pointing to the girls bringing the beakers to their mouths. He said, "You didn't used any sugar." Lotion's and Cordelia's faces contorted in disgust at the highly sour punch.

Buffy's eyes widened, and said, "Oh, my god, I'll be expelled."

"No one but them has had any punch yet," Xander grinned conspiratorially at Buffy. "Well, apart from me and Willow. We had to drink a few away after taking it from a few who got to the punch first."

"You guys are the best friends," Buffy told him.

Xander shrugged, and with a sour face said, "Better not ever forget it." Buffy shook her head.

-----

Some time later Joyce and Willow returned. "That was an interesting tour," Joyce commented with a frown. "We got to Chemistry, and it was empty, we got to English and it was empty."

"Well, those pesky classes, never know- . . ." Willow tried to explain.

"Mrs. Summers," Snyder called out an interruption. Joyce turned to him, and said, "We have to talk." Then the two grownups left, and Buffy swallowed nervously.

A short while later they returned. Deo had rejoined her daughter by now. Xander and Willow stood on either side of Buffy, lending her their strength.

"Buffy Summers," Joyce said with careful contained anger. Buffy swallowed, this did not sound good. Just as Joyce was about to cut into her daughter, the large window to Buffy's right shattered, and a bunch of growling vampires arrived.

"Well, hello. I've come to kill everyone," a vamped out Spike commented with his heavy British accent. His gaze ended up at Lotion who had walked forward already. "What can I say, I couldn't wait."

"Blondie, good, I tired of waiting," Lotion commented and went into a battle stance, grinning.

"No, them to safety first," Buffy said, pulling Lotion along as she grabbed her mother and a few more clueless grownups.

"She's right, daughter," Deo said before Lotion could protest.

The whole large group of people ran away from the advancing vampires and in the pandemonium that ensued, some went left, others right. The large double entrance doors were closed and two vamped out vampires, one female, guarded it. On the other side another exit was equally guarded. Buffy pulled her mother, and some more grownups, Snyder included toward the double doors while people screamed in panic. Not knowing how her friends were doing, Buffy couldn't worry, but couldn't _/not/_ worry either, and pulled the group into a side corridor. She ran quickly, soon finding an open door and a darkened classroom behind it. "Inside, now!" Buffy ordered, drowning out her mother's and Snyder's protests.

Once inside, Buffy closed the door, and started barricading it with whatever she could find. The grownups soon helped, and the door was barricaded just enough before a vampire banged on it from the outside, but not able to budge.

"Did I see that right? Because I didn't have much time, but were their faces miss formed?" Joyce asked fearfully as Buffy was already looking around for what to do next.

"PCP, they were a gang on PCP," Snyder said with a little fear in his voice. Buffy in the meantime looked out the windows, and was pretty certain she saw at least two vampires standing guard outside. She looked around, and then up.

"We have to get out of here," a man said and went for the windows, intending to remove the protective wooden planks and get out that way.

"No!" Buffy ordered without needing to think about it.

"Buffy!" her mother admonished her daughter.

Buffy ignored her and said, "If you go out there, they'll kill you."

Snyder wanted to push past the blonde and said, "This is ridiculous, you're student, I'm the principal, I say what goes on around here."

"You will not go outside, that's what I tell you. Why? Because I'm the girl that knows how to stop them," Buffy told him with a grim non-nonsense tone. She then walked past him to a table.

"I won't stand for this," Snyder said but did as told.

"Buffy? What are you going to do?" Joyce said with concern, fear, and a little anger.

Buffy answered immediately, "I have to go check if all the others are fine, and work on getting you all out of here alive."

"But you can't go out there, you said it yourself," her mother stated in a little irritation.

"I know, that's why I'm going up there," Buffy said and put a chair upon the table and climbed up. "Mom, keep them all inside here, and safe, and I'll come back for you all, okay?"

"Okay," Joyce said a little perturbed as Buffy disappeared into the ceiling.

-----

Inside the library were Jenny, Giles, Lotion, Xander and two more grownups and their children. They too had barricaded the door, and Jenny wondered, "What are we going to do now?"

"Undoubtedly the bastards have people outside to keep us from escaping," Xander immediately said walking over to the far end of the library to a window. "So you'll stay put while I go outside and take care of them so we have an escape route. I'll come back once that's done and we'll get the people out, then we round us up the rest of the bastards."

"Great! I go with!" Lotion said enthusiastically.

"No, Lotion, you have to stay here and protect them, got that?" Xander told his potential girlfriend. Lotion pouted. Why in blazes could all the women in his life do that? "Got that?" he repeated. Lotion nodded, and Xander then quickly crawled out, closing the window behind him.

-----

"This is insane, I'm getting out of here," one men of the four people that were with Snyder and Joyce said. He marched toward the window.

"Right you are, I won't listen to a student," Snyder said and joined him.

"You can't do that, didn't you hear what my daughter said?" Joyce said desperately, joining the two men.

"I can see where your daughter gets it," Snyder told Joyce snidely, as the other man finished opening a big enough hole to crawl through, which he promptly started. Snyder continued, "We're going out there, call the police and other help, and- . . ."

"AAH! AH! AAAH!" the man crawling out screamed as growling was heard and he was dragged outside.

". . . stay safely inside here," Snyder finished swallowing deeply. Joyce grabbed the planks the man had pulled open, and proceeded with quickly closing them again, after which she closed the window.

-----

Spike found a vampire crashing against the door to Joyce's hideout. "It won't budge," the vampire said in explanation.

"Then use your head!" Spike said, grabbing the vampire and slamming his head . . . in a fire hazard case with breakable glass behind which was among other things an axe. He took the axe and handed it with irritation at the vamp. The vamp nodded sheepishly, and started hacking the door.

Spike then continued onward, and smashed open one door. "No one here." Then another, "There's no one here either."

Cordelia and Willow sat inside the janitor's closet, holding each other, trying to stay quiet. "Eeny, meeny . . ." Spike said ready to kick the janitor's closet in.

"Spike, listen!" another vampire called out, and pointed upward.

Spike was silent and looked up, where a little stumbling could be here. "Someone's up there," Spike singsonged along. He pushed the vampire onward. He walked away from him, and quickly found several long metal poles. He called a female vampire to him, and said, "And you help me with this." He then started poking the ceiling hard, and so did the female vampire.

-----

Up in the rafters Buffy saw a pike poke through, and quickly moved onward, she head reached her destination anyhow, and quickly snuck down.

Down below in the library Giles was about ready to go out their, armed with a few stakes and crossbows. Lotion was eager to go along, but Jenny stopped them both. Giles told her, "That's my . . ." Giles looked over at the other people and said, "students out there, I must help them."

Buffy then landed between them from the ceiling, and said, "Giles!" She looked around, seeing the frightened people and a disappointed Lotion. "Situation?" she asked as she took a stake from him.

"Xander went out to clear an escape route, he told us to stay here and keep them safe," Giles said pointing at the frightened people.

Buffy nodded and said, "I don't know where Willow, Cordelia, Deo and the others went, but I'm guessing whoever's with Deo is safe."

"Very safe," Lotion nodded with a proud smile, then frowned. "Unless piss off mother, and _/she/_ kills them." Buffy, Jenny and Giles looked at Lotion. "Highly unlikely, mother not easy _/that/_ pissed off," Lotion added to reassure them.

"Ha, ha, that's a joke, correct?" Giles commented, and Lotion just looked at him.

-----

In another closed off room Deo's fist crashed against a butch father's jaw, breaking it, and sending him flying over a few tables. "SHUT UP!" Deo screamed in extreme irritation. "I say what goes here, clear? If you stupid men don't stop bugging me with your stupidity, _/I/_ will kill you!"

-----

"My mom, Snyder and a few others are inside one of the classrooms, rather close to an exit I think, and one vamp with an fire axe seems to be determined," Buffy said thinking. "Do you think Xander will clear a big enough escape route for more than one exit?"

"Undoubtedly, the boy may be rash, and not too quick in class, but he's not stupid, certainly not with this stuff," Giles told her his honest opinion. "However, he's not yet back, so I don't know how complete he's done."

Buffy nodded, and said, "You're right, Xander will keep them safe, I know. Okay, I go relieve mom and the others, then I'll come back here so we can free them, and find the rest."

"I come?" Lotion half asked, half stated.

"No, keep doing as Xander said, he'll probably return here. Protect them, once I return after I get my mom safe, and these are safe, you can come along," Buffy said with authority preparing to go back up.

Lotion slumped and said, "Too bad. I love killing vampires, dust sound soothing. Hurry back."

They all looked at her, and Giles said hesitantly, "Well, that's a . . . healthy attitude."

As Buffy disappeared, one of the other grownups asked, "Vampires?"

"The ones outside?" Lotion said confused.

-----

The vampire turned to dust as Xander's stake penetrated its heart. Two more vamps jumped at Xander and sent them both flying with a powerful spinning jump kick. Then he quickly dusted them. He had cleaned out about a quarter of a circle around the school by now. Suddenly he twisted around and brought the stake forward, and stopped it just before it hit home. "Dead boy," he growled recognizing the startled vampire, "what are _/you/_ doing here?"

Angel held his hands up defensively, and said, "I decided to follow a hunch, I guess I was right."

"Well . . . good for you," Xander said and then turned around, going straight for the main entrance. "Get to the windows of the library, and get the parents and their child to safety, so Lotion can join in on the fun."

"Lotion?" Angel asked.

Xander grinned looking over his shoulder and said, "Perhaps it's best not to meet her, her philosophy on vamps is rather like mine. I like that about her."

"And what are you going to do?" Angel asked following Xander.

"I'm going to go in there, and dust every vampire I can find, what else?" Xander told him somewhat irritated.

"You can't do that! You know who's in there?" Angel questioned.

Xander halted, and said, "Yeah, some vamp who's managed to kill two slayers, but not one more."

"He's killed more than two, those are just the ones in the last century and the ones the Watchers know about, and he's got lots and lots of backup," Angel told him exasperated.

"All the more reason for you to get the people out so I get my own backup, like say a slayer and a girl who can defeat a Slayer with one kick and her mother that's even more powerful," Xander said more and more irritated.

"Hold on a moment, I've got a plan that should give us the element of surprise," Angel said, put his hand in a puddle with water, and splashed it on Xander.

"What? Huh!?" Lexa called out, then looked angrily at Angel. "What is this for!?"

"Spike likes girls more," Angel explained and put Lexa's head in a hold under his arm, before she got her bearings to do something about it.

"Damn it, let go!" Lexa complained.

"Will you just trust me this once, Xander!?" Angel complained heavily as he marched Lexa to the main entrance.

Behind them there were two persons, one vampire, and behind him the eternal lost boy. Ryoga had just commented how glad he was he had finally found a way out of that mall, when he recognized 'him'. He growled and walked resolutely after the vampire and the cursed girl. The unnamed vampire heard the growl and turned around. He licked his lips when he saw the specimen of physical perfection, but before he could do much about it, Ryoga's old style Japanese umbrella - containing quite some wood - smashed straight through the demon's chest, despite its outer tip of about ten centimeters. A moment later the vampire turned to dust.

-----

The vampire happily axed away at the door, until Buffy fell on top of him, and then dusted him. "Mom! It's me, open up!" Buffy called, knocking on the door. A few moments later the door opened and Joyce and several frightened grown ups, Snyder included, came out. Buffy pointed at the exit to the right and said, "Get out through there quickly, and put distance between the school and you. It's safe now."

"How do you know?" Snyder exclaimed in irritation.

"I do, just go, okay?" Buffy said and pointed a the exit. Snyder nodded and several more grownups followed him to the exit.

"Buffy, where are you going?" Joyce said as she saw Buffy turning the other way.

Buffy turned to her mom, and said, "There are still more people trapped inside, amongst others my friends, I have to go help them."

"Buffy . . ."

"Mom, I'll be fine, trust me, now get yourself to safety," Buffy said urgently, and her mother then nodded in agreement and left. Buffy turned back further inward into the building. Then turned back when she saw a dark-haired girl coming into the building while the grownups were leaving. "Sheila, you're late, there are some people who want to hurt some of our friends' parents, you should go," Buffy said. Sheila grinned, bent down and picked up the axe.

"Hey, you know me, let's do some quality violence," Sheila said with a wide smile.

Buffy hesitated a moment, and then nodded, "Take out their limbs or the head, spine otherwise, don't bother with the rest of the body. You'll be in for a surprise." The two girls then went into the building.

-----

"Hey, Spike! Didn't I teach you to always guard your perimeter?" a vamped out Angel called when he entered the building with Lexa under his arms.

"Angelus! I did, hard to find good help these days," Spike said with a huge grin. "Fancy meeting you here." He walked toward Angel, and Angel did the same.

"Yeah, well, what can I say, this town is full of snacks," Angel said with a wide grin.

-----

"Be careful, I think I hear some," Buffy warned Sheila behind her and she went a little more careful, as they closed in on the main corridor leading to the lobby and the library.

Sheila smiled, vamping out, and carefully pulled the axe back, ready to hack Buffy to pieces. Buffy looked to her left, and in a window, seeing the reflection of the axe ready to kill her, but no Sheila. Buffy's eyes widened and twisted to the left. The swing missed, overbalancing Sheila and Buffy's stake hit home. When Sheila turned to dust, the axe clanged to the floor. Buffy contemplated for a moment, then stuck her stake behind the waist of her white skirt, and picked up the axe.

-----

Spike continued with a big toothy smile, still holding the pike he had been using to poke the ceiling, "I guess so, say, you wouldn't have met up with this annoyingly illusive Slayer, would you?"

"Ah, yes, well, she's a looker, I gave her the whole tortured act, fell for it hook, line and sinker. Now she leaves me alone so I can feed," Angel said with a huge grin.

"I knew it!" Lexa hissed, and a moment later, before either vampire knew what happened, Lexa's right fist crashed into Angel's gut, doubling him over a little. With a quick twist she was free, and then uppercutted Angel with her left with his back still to the dark vampire. Angel was launched of his feet and slid across the slippery floor. "Once I'm done with Bleach Boy over here, you're next Dead Boy!" Lexa hissed and took in Spike and his entourage of six vamps.

Angel groaned from the floor, "Damn it, that was just a lie."

"Bloody hell, Angelus. You were by bloody sire, my Yoda! What's wrong with you!?" Spike raged at the down Angelus. "Oh, for piss sake, you guys take care of the wannabe and the traitor, I'll go take care of the Slayer." Spike said and turned around, walking away with annoyance. A moment later the first vampire turned to dust.

-----

Lotion paced back and forth like a cage animal. Finally she couldn't take it anymore and hefted the sword she had taken from the armory a little better. Grimacing she walked up to the double doors leading in, and said, "I'm tired of waiting! Xander and Buffy hogging all the fun!" She reached the doors and kicked them open with one might kick, leaving Giles and Jenny carrying crossbows to protect the people.

-----

Spike looked astonished as the library doors burst open, launching two vampires that were trying to get in across the hall and against the wall. Lotion came out and smoothly staked both, putting her stake back again and bringing up her sword. "Slayer!" Spike called with some happiness, hands in the air, displaying the pike.

Lotion noticed him, and rapidly ran toward him, until she was standing in the lobby, and Spike in front of the side corridor. "As a favor to you, Slayer, I'm going to make this painless," Spike said with a huge grin, and then looked startled at the girl's response.

Lotion grinned predatory and said, "Promised future husband I hack of your limbs, and crush your balls several times before I dust. I always keep promises."

"Well, that's a new one," Spike said. He shrugged and attacked his pike slamming against Lotion's sword. Buffy's axe swished right through air, missing Spike just as he went to attack Lotion. She looked astonished for a moment, and then turned to watched Lotion easily deflecting Spike's blows. The vampire seemed to be having fun.

"Hey, Spike, what about me?" Buffy called as she entered the lobby. Spike looked around, and watched Buffy.

"Not another wannabe," Spike muttered and started to notice he was distinctly outnumbered.

"Who are you calling wannabe, Captain Bleach!?" Buffy told him angrily and swung her axe. Spike blocked it with his pike, and kicked the axe from her hands, it clanged to the floor and slit back to the side corridor.

He switched his pike quickly to block Lotion's thrust and twisted around his axis, putting Buffy and Lotion at the side of the lobby and he at the side of the corridor. With another twist Lotion's axe went flying, making her angry.

-----

Angel watched Xander dust a second vampire, but the five of them in such close quarters were starting to overwhelm him. He got up, preparing to help him out, when a very strong hand grabbed him. "Out of my way!" Ryoga hissed, and casually tossed Angel backward from him. To Angel's shock he was launched into the air in a wide arc out the exit. "You!" Ryoga roared in anger.

Lexa looked over and rolled his eyes. "Oh, no, not you again. Well, if you're here, you might as well help out. Have fun with him, boys," Lexa said, then pushed one vamp toward Ryoga and jumped over the rest, saying, "I've got my self a big bad to fry."

Lexa ran over to Spike and watched with satisfaction as Lotion grabbed Spike's pike and then kicked him so hard he was launched backward until he crashed into the wall, the pike now in Lotion's hands, and Spike looking astonished. Lexa grinned, and slid to a stop, overtaking Spike a bit, annoying her.

"What the bloody . . .?" Spike muttered seeing Lexa's arrival and counted three against one now. This wasn't in the planning. Spike turned to Lotion, and said, "What's the matter, Slayer? Can't handle one little vamp on your own?"

Lotion's face darkened, and ask, "Why you keep call me Slayer!? I not Slayer, stupid blonde with ugly nose is Slayer!!"

"What!?" Spike said in shock, and took a few steps forward.

Buffy exploded, hands balled into fists, "I'M NOT STUPID! AND MY NOSE IS NOT UGLY!!!"

"It's square like pig's," Lotion calmly pointed out. Spike now stood in front of Lexa, both of whom were taking in the spectacle.

"One of these days, bitch, one of these days Xander will have trained me enough, and then I will kick your ass all the way back to China!" Buffy growled at the Amazon.

"You not even know where China is," Lotion returned snideful.

Before Buffy would boil over and attack Lotion despite what she knew the outcome would be, Ryoga's voice called out, "Out of the way, demon spawn! I have business with that bastard!!" Behind him one vampire lay groaning with several ribs sticking out of its body. The dust on the floor was testament to what happened to the rest of them.

A little less far behind Ryoga stood Buffy's mother, holding the axe, and said, "Demon spawn!? Buffy, what does he mean by that!?"

"Oh, no," Buffy muttered, while Spike looked around him, counting the numbers, and seeing his chances of victory hitting rock bottom, and survival following soon after, as well as trying to figure out where the 'bastard' was that the guy with the big umbrella was talking about. "Mom, not now, please."

Spike was fed up, and vamped out, hoping intimidation, and family squabbles would give him an opening for escape, "Alright, 'mom', you want an answer? I'm a vampire, a demon animated corpse, a blood-sucking fiend from beyond the pissing dead, I'm the big bad, and I'm going to drain your lovely daughter who happens to be the sodding chosen one, the bloody Slayer, from all her blood. Getting it yet!?" Joyce's jaw dropped, Buffy groaned, Lotion looked confused. "And that means you, you wanking boy, you don't belong here! Now, can we get on with the mayhem of me killing you or not!"

Ryoga growled, and roared, "I said, 'OUT OF THE WAY!'" He attacked, swiping his umbrella with rapid speed from right to left, completely surprising Spike. As the umbrella hit him in the right side, the vampire felt multiple bones break in multiple places, and yelled out in pain. He was simply launched off his feet, past Lotion and Buffy, crashing into a few tables and skidding to a halt.

"Bloody hell!" he groaned out in pain, holding his painful side, and then looked in shock at the unassuming boy that took a step toward Lexa, and swirled the umbrella around one finger - that Spike realized had to be seriously heavy - like it was a simply light little stick. Realizing his chance, he staggered to his feet, and groaning with every step he ran out the broken window.

"You let him get away," Lexa said shocked at Spike fleeing the scene.

"I don't care, I shall kill you now!" Ryoga roared and attacked. Lexa jumped back and the umbrella hit the floor, cracking it open with ease. Lotion's, Buffy's, and Joyce's eyes went wide in shock at the power behind it, and watched how the boy casually swivelled the umbrella back in place for another attack.

This time Lexa stepped into the attack, and blocked it at the wrist, making sure the umbrella didn't hit him. Ryoga had his teeth clenched shut and growled. "I already told you I was sorry, can't we just get along? What in blazes did I do that was so bad anyhow?" Xander asked, genuinely puzzled.

"You dare say you don't know!?" Ryoga roared, and took a jump back ready to attack again.

"Well, we don't know for sure," Lotion interrupted the boy.

"Yeah, we don't even know who you are," Buffy added looking at the boy, and rather a bit afraid. The boy was probably as strong if not stronger that Xander was.

"_/I/_ am Ryoga Hibiki!" Ryoga declared like that explained everything, and then explained.

O

"I'm . . . finally here," Ryoga muttered, leaning on a wooden stick. He just left the forest and was now standing on an edge of a small, low ravine, with ponds of water below. "Now to find . . ."

Several sounds drew his attention, and he turned around. A panda came running out the forest and Ryoga's eyes widened. A moment later the panda jumped, and used Ryoga for a spring board, clearing the ravine easily. Ryoga staggered back, and flinging his hands about he managed to stay standing. "POPS!" a female voice yelled, and Ryoga looked startled, seeing a redhead girl close in on him, and jump up, equally stepping on his face and jumping across the expanse.

"AAH!" Ryoga screamed losing balance, threatening to fall down the short cliff. He managed to twist himself, and grab a hold of the cliff edge, but he was slipping.

"Ranma! Genma! Wait up!" another female voice screamed, and Ryoga managed to see a raven-haired girl running toward him.

"Help, girl, pull me up!" Ryoga called desperately.

"Sorry, no time!" the girl said and jumped at the edge, which crumbled because of it immediately, "Don't worry, just a short drop, you won't even feel a thing, and there's water to break the fall too." The girl landed and ran onward, while Ryoga fell.

O

"Well, there you go, you're fine, I was right, and I apologized right there," Lexa told him with a friendly smile. "If the fall had been deadly, I would have pulled you up, no doubt about it."

"Fine!? FINE!?" Ryoga yelled holding up his left fist with extreme anger. "I'll tell you fine!!"

O

Ryoga fell, and then splashed into the water. A moment later a small dark-brown piglet spluttered to the surface, oinking and squeaking, then sank back down. Ryoga did not really know how to swim as a piglet yet. Once again he surfaced, and once again he sank. Finally he managed to just barely reach the edge and climbed up. On dry land, he heaved breath into his lungs deeply, being exhausted.

A shadow made him look up, and he saw the panda once again. The panda made a sound and then grabbed the piglet before he could run, and happily took him along.

-----

"Oh, what a nice piglet!" the Jusenkyo guide called with a big grin. "He'll make a fantastic dinner!" The panda nodded proudly, while Ryoga squealed and screeched trying to get away.

Several moments later Genma in human form sat at the table, knife and fork in hand. The guide had put water in a big frying pan, and had filled it with ingredients. "What good luck that you found such a tasty piglet, sir!" the guide said with a big grin. "Absolutely great, he'll make a great diner. And he'll never know what'll happen to him, well, unless of course he's unfortunate soul who fell into the pond of the drowned piglet. Tragic story about piglet drowning there seven hundred years ago." Ryoga squealed and screamed more in his little cage. The guide pulled the pig out by his neck, and said, "But that couldn't possibly be, what would be the odds?" The guide held Ryoga over the pain, the pick kicked and cycled his short legs, squealing, and squeaking over and over. "Here goes," the guide said and dropped the pig in the pan.

"Youch!!" Ryoga screamed turning back into a boy and jumping out of the pan.

The guide and Genma looked shocked as Ryoga ran out the door of the guide's house.

O

"ALL YOU!! ALL RANMA AND YOU, YOU, YOU!!" Ryoga screamed enraged.

"Xander Harris, pleased to meet you," Lexa supplied.

"AAAH!!" Ryoga screamed and attacked once again with a flurry of blows, umbrella twisting and swivelling. All Lexa could do was jump back, and avoid.

Wait! If he was a Jusenkyo victim! She came past the chemistry room, and the cleaning shower for accidents. She grabbed for the opening handle, and once the water came, she let it enter her hands. "RAAH!" Ryoga screamed bringing the umbrella down for the final time . . . just in time Lexa had enough water and threw it, splashing Ryoga in the face. The umbrella went wide and crashed into and lodged into the wall. Ryoga's clothes and backpack were on the floor, and Lexa turned the shower closed. Squeaking with indignation Ryoga wormed himself free from his clothes. He looked up with hateful eyes at Lexa, and then jumped oinking dangerously. Lexa caught Ryoga by his neck, and started walking back.

Lotion and Buffy had walked forward to be able to see, and looked with shock at the piglet jumping at Lexa and she bringing it with her. Something clanged. "Mom!" Buffy yelled as she watched her mother drop into unconsciousness. She sped over and was just in time to catch her, or she would have crashed to the floor.

Lexa reached the girls, and one unconscious mother, still holding the squealing piglet out in front of her. Buffy looked up, waving cool air into her mother's face, and said, "I think she took that rather well, don't you think?" Lexa shrugged.

"Well!?" was called out, and the library doors opened. Giles, Jenny and the parents and student came out. Lotion could just see them, as Giles asked again, "Did I hear you say everything his well!?"

"Okay!" Lotion called out and beckoned them over. Ryoga in the meantime calmed down, giving up his futile sputtering about.

In the distance a janitor's closet opened, and Willow and Cordelia peeked out. "Okay!? Everything's okay!?" Cordelia called out.

"Yes!" Lexa called, and so the two girls walked over as well. Once both groups arrived, Willow, Cordelia and Jenny noticed Ryoga. The parents though quickly walked onward, taking their students with them.

"Oh, such a cute piglet!" Jenny called out and took the pig from Xander, hugging it to her chest, making Ryoga squeal in protest again.

"Where did you find it?" Willow said demanding it from Jenny, and squishing the piglet to her own chest. Jenny and Cordelia went to stroke it, Ryoga squeaked more, and then glared at Lexa dangerously.

Lexa just looked with dropped jaw. "Hello, that's a guy! Just like I fell into the pond of the drowned girl, he fell into the pond of the drowned piglet," Lexa told them annoyed.

Ryoga screeched more. The girls looked up, and then down a the pig. Willow shrugged, and said, "Doesn't matter, he's _/so/_ cute!" The other girls agreed.

Giles then reset his glasses and said, "I'll go find Deo."

A few minutes later Giles found Deo rubbing some dust off of her clothes, and muttering, "Those stupid, macho, utter halfwits, I warned them, didn't I?!" At first Giles thought she meant the vampire she had obviously dusted, but then remembered Lotion's earlier words. He quickly ran past the woman and looked into the only opened classroom. There about four men lay strewn about, wherever they had landed. A few women looked shocked, a few male students had fearfully crept underneath tables. After a quick check, Giles was relieved that there was no blood anywhere, the men had simply been knocked unconscious, the different hued bruises a testament to that.

Back in the lobby, Joyce had come too, and after some heavy calming down she had finally accepted that all she had gone through was real, and she had said she and Buffy would have a long talk when they got home. In order to get away from the seeming ready to explode mother, Buffy had decided to wander away a little and came across Ryoga's umbrella, which had fallen to the floor, taking some wall with it. She looked at it, and shrugged. She reached down with her right hand and picked it up, or rather tried. Buffy's eyes widened in shock and then put more effort into, slowly, bit by bit pulling it off the floor. She used her second hand and soon had it pointing to the ceiling, but she was straining to keep it straight up. She gasped, jaw dropping, and looked back at the piglet being cuddled and hugged. The guy had swivelled and twisted it around with one arm as if the thing had weighed nothing. She couldn't believe it, and looked back at the massive umbrella.

-----

In the anointed one's factory hideout, Spike was in his Drusilla's arms, wincing still at the pain in his side. It would take some time before the bones were healed. It was the next day already, and a beam of light was filtering through a high window. Next to Spike and Drusilla - a dark, and rather insane dark-haired vampiress - a metal cage hung on chains.

"A Slayer with family and friends, each - girls included - just as strong as she is, and a boy wielding a thousand pound umbrella like a match stick. That was most assuredly bloody well not in the brochure, pet," Spike muttered, still amazed at last night's events.

"I know, Spaike," Drusilla said stroking his hair.

"How's the Annoying One?" Spike muttered looking at the child looking on his makeshift throne, a flunky vampire next to him.

"A little upset," Drusilla practically rolled out of her mouth.

"Well, I'll go make nice now," Spike commented, and slowly walked over to the boy vampire, wincing with every step. Reaching the boy, Spike kneeled down.

"You failed," the boy stated.

"I know, I apologize and I offer penance," Spike drawled out.

The flunky vampire yelled angrily, "Penance!? You were impatient, our numbers are depleted! You should give up your life!"

"Yes, well, there were some unforseen circumstances, and if I had to do it again . . ." Spike looked up, a smile suddenly on his face, and practically laughing out loud he said, "Who am I kidding!? I would do it the exact same way, except . . ." Spike suddenly got up, pushed the flunky aside and grabbed the boy putting him over his shoulder, saying, "I would do _/this/_ first!" He walked over to the cage, the boy screaming. Another flunky vampire tried to attack the bleached blonde, but with one single kick backward the vampire was dropped to the floor unconscious. Spike dumped the Anointed One in the cage, wincing a bit at his broken bones. He slammed the cage shut, and went over to some more chains. He started pulling and the cage went up and up, toward the beam of light, stopping just before. "Now!" Spike called out loud, several vampires hidden away watching in morbid fascination. "We're going to have some less ritual around here, and some more fun!" He then pulled one last time and the Anointed one was pulled into the light. He screamed as he burned to death.

Drusilla smiled at the now empty cage, deliciously enjoying the death of the boy, and then swayed over to Spike, who returned to the middle of the room. Spike embraced Drusilla, and said, "Now pet, let's see what's on the telly."

"Spike," Drusilla commented in approval and the two walked away, finding a tv.


	10. part 10

Buffy watched as her still dazed and amazed mother just sat there at the table in the kitchen. She had taken in her whole story. Willow, Giles, and Xander sitting around, corroborating it. "That is . . . that is . . ." Joyce muttered and then looked up at her daughter. "I'd like a word with my daughter alone?"

Willow, Xander, and Giles nodded and left, leaving a very nervous Buffy. Vampires, demons, and Snyder - she was so dead, her mother would lock her up and throw away the key. "You're angry, aren't you?" Buffy asked nervously, rubbing her hands together.

"No," Joyce answered, making Buffy look surprised. "I'm concerned, terrified, and a lot of other things, but not angry - well, not at you . . . have you tried . . . _/not/_ being a Slayer?"

"It doesn't work that way, and yes, multiple times," Buffy answered with a trembling lower lip. "It's just what I am, how I work, besides . . . Xander, Willow, Giles, and even that Lotion are fighting the vamps and stuff . . . how could I face them if the one given the super strength and meant to do so, doesn't?"

Joyce sighed again, shaking her head, and said, "This is all . . . this all so much to take in." Buffy pouted sadly. "I guess I'll have to get used to my daughter . . . there's no way in hell I can ever get used to that."

"Mom," Buffy muttered pitifully.

"I'll just have to accept it instead," Joyce continued, looking into Buffy's eyes. "I'll never like it, and I'll be sitting here terrified for you Buffy." Buffy lowered her head; this had been one reason why she hadn't told her mom, showed her proof while doing so - she didn't want to worry her. "I'm glad for one thing though," Joyce went onward, making Buffy look up again. "You kept your head cool in a crisis, came up with solutions, and continued to think about helping your friends and others. When a mother finds out her child can handle herself, that's a huge burden off her shoulders."

Buffy brightened, and then hugged her mother, who hugged her right bag. "Oh, what a moving sight." Joyce looked backward, and Buffy looked up, seeing a smiling Xander standing there in the door opening. Willow and Giles joined her. "Sorry," he added, "I came to check if you were done already."

"You can warm cold pizza in the refrigerator in the microwave, Xander," Buffy told and Xander brightened right away.

"Magic words," he said as he opened the fridge and went to look. Joyce chuckled, Buffy joined in, and soon all but Xander laughed. "What?" he asked, as held up a plate with a quarter pizza left on it.

-----

Buffy avoided the blow narrowly, and threw her own punch, getting tossed over Xander's shoulder for her efforts. She groaned as she landed hard on the mat Xander's very own gym room.

"Get up, I'll show you what you did wrong," Xander said with a grin, and held out his hand. Buffy took it, giving Xander in workout gear a surreptitious and admiring look. She was pulled up and came close to him, breathing in his sent - his sweaty sent, his very fresh, just generated by working out sweaty sent. A bit away from her super sensitive nose picked it up easily, now standing so close it drove her mad. God, he smelled so good. Angel didn't smell so good, she thought guiltily. Angel didn't sweat! She pushed the guilt away, they were broken up after all, and then remembered Willow and a new wave of guilt crashed onto her. She looked into his smiling face and took gingerly step back, swallowing, he smelled so . . . manly, butch, like an incredible, fantastic, very active paragon of male fitness. Xander stepped behind and grabbed her right arm, putting it the position she had it when punching. "You notice the its bent here? That means people can get under it, you need put it more straight, and make less of a swing, you arm should be more in front of you instead of making a wide swing. The wide swing can be successfully used for the extra power, but only if your opponent is in no position to make use of its weaknesses, got that?"

Buffy nodded, she got it, even though she was distracted by the sweaty muscled arm against her sweaty, slender, although still powerful arm, as well as the contact of his chest against her back. This was so not fair, why the hell did her best friend, and best friend's love interest have to get such a major hotness upgrade. Banish it, banish, don't think about it, he's just your Xander-shaped friend - and what a shape - NO!

"Xander," a sweet voice called. Buffy's eyes narrowed; that's right focus on the annoyance, you're annoyed, annoyed, annoyed. There's nothing here but annoyance - who am I kidding? She took in the sweaty and bouncy Lotion - bouncy in more ways then one. "I can't seem to be able to get this, could you help me?" Lotion asked, letting her hands rub suggestively across her upper thighs.

"Sure," Xander said, and Buffy was damned if she couldn't hear the smile in his voice. A few moments later he was showing Lotion - not really showing, more like making her do the move, just touchy as he did with her. Damn it, was Xander trying to make her jealous? Well, it wasn't working, for she was not jealous, she was _/not/_ jealous . . .

-God, I'm _/so/_ jealous!- Buffy thought depressed. Of Willow, of Lotion, because that girl had actually managed to go on a date with Xander. -I'm hopeless, and evil - evil, evil, evil!- Perhaps she should have before . . . nah, impossible; the moment Willow had said she was interested in Xander he had been off limits for Buffy's according to her senses of honor . . . which hadn't mattered much back then hadn't it? Because there had come the hot, dream, incredible Angel, Xander hadn't been any more than a friend after that. The pain of the break up with the vampire came back at that moment, but she squashed it away; there was no way she was going to turn into a blubbering mess right here in this training session. Oh, right! Starting again. She started the very educational dance of violence with Xander again. What would have happened if Willow didn't have a crush on . . . -Don't go there! Evil, evil, evil! Just focus on now, there will be other guys!!- Actual guys! There was this nagging idea that Angel - and by proxy Xander - had been right about the whole 240-year-old vampire - 17-year-old Slayer just can't work. She hated that.

Finally the training session was over, and she was pretty certain she had gotten a lot better in the last hour of training. That was a good thing though, she should try out some of this stuff on a vamp tonight, that would help her alleviate some stress.

-----

"Why do we have to go and eat _/there/_?" Xander asked in annoyance. "Lotion turned out to be somewhat alright, but the devil woman is still evil."

"No reason," Buffy said with a smile. Uh, uh, no reason at all. Willow looked at Buffy with a questioning gaze, and then noticed Xander do the same to her.

"I don't know," Willow said with a shrug. "She suggested it, or rather she and Cordelia."

"Buffy convinced me," Cordelia answered and gestured at the Slayer.

"Buffy?" Xander prompted again, but she didn't answer.

They reached the entrance of Deo and Lotion's restaurant, and stepped inside. Xander's eyes narrowed and then looked from Buffy to the scene. Willow's and Cordelia's eyes opened appreciatively, while Buffy allowed just a tiny almost imperceptible smirk on her face. There was the waiter, one Ryoga Hibiki, topless. -Oh, yeah,- Buffy thought with a smile she quickly hid. -Just as good looking as I thought he'd be. If I can't date Xander, I might as well find some other guy to lust after . . . that's right, lust, he should keep my mind off of Xander long enough I'd say for Willow to capture his heart. Oh, Willow! If you'd know the torture I go through for you!-

"Ooh, I like the way you think, Buffy," Cordelia said with a smile. Of course, Ryoga wasn't Xander, but he'd do in a pinch. Willow had to nod at that, she may have the hots for Xander and Lexa, but that didn't mean she couldn't look around, right?

Xander and Ryoga's gazes crossed, and Ryoga's eyes widened. "You!" he said, and then charged forward with two plates still in his hand.

**"-Ryoga!-"** Deo's voice rang out, commanding, Ryoga stopped and turned around. The people in the restaurant looked with large eyes at the spectacle. "You go after him, and you're fired. You'll have a tough time earning the money for boat fare back to Japan!" Ryoga had some obvious difficulties controlling himself, then gave Xander a hateful glare and returned to waiting. Xander looked from Ryoga to Buffy, and back again. Oh, that was seriously annoying . . . wait a minute, that's right, he wanted to make up to the guy anyway, and two could play Willow's game. That's right.

The group sat down, and ordered their food. When Ryoga came to put the orders in front of them, the girls were openly ogling him. Xander sat there with annoyance. They ate, the girls chatting happily on occasion trying to draw Xander in, but he stayed mostly quiet, trying to think of a way to get to Ryoga, then he grinned, thinking of a way. "Let me tell you guys a joke," Xander said as Ryoga came toward them to pick up their. "There was this piglet and a farmer . . ."

The plates were shoved roughly under the girls noses, and Ryoga grabbed Xander by the collar and lifted him off his seat. "You _/dare/_ mock me?" Ryoga hissed, while Xander saw Deo get angry behind the counter.

He gave Ryoga the most brilliant, and innocent smile, and said, "No, I was just trying to tell a joke . . ."

Ryoga growled and threw his hand back, readying a punch. "RYOGA!" Deo's voice yelled once more. "I see you absolutely need this, but take it outside, whatever damage your fight causes in here, you will pay off first!"

The eternal lost boy looked over and then with a growl dragged Xander outside. The three girls looked at each other, and then quickly followed them out. Outside they saw Xander being tossed backward as Deo joined them to watch her future son in law in action.

Xander landed on his feet, looking at the boy. He was strong, he knew, very strong. If the guy could twirl that umbrella around like it was nothing. He had to be very careful. Xander jumped forward, and twisted aside of Ryoga's angry punch. Ryoga twisted along with him, parrying his blow. Xander ducked beneath Ryoga's follow up punch, grabbed his arm and made shoulder toss. To his surprise Ryoga twisted around his axis himself and landed on his feet, immediately kicking out his right leg. Xander gave out an oof as Ryoga's foot crashed into his stomach and launched him back. Xander landed on his feet, but had too much momentum backward so he stumbled back. He was just in time to avoid Ryoga's punch and swipe at his legs, which Ryoga jumped over. Xander immediately went up in an uppercut. Ryoga groaned as the fit hit him underneath his chin just as he landed. He went up in the air, and backward, making sure he landed on his feet. Xander's follow up punch Ryoga pushed aside leaving his chest open. The lost boy then landed a powerful right on his chest, sending Xander flying back. With a painful groan Xander made a backward somersault and landed, looking at Ryoga. Damn, the guy wasn't only strong, but he was also almost as good as Ranma.

Xander attacked again, the two combatants exchanging blows and parries, before Ryoga used a sharp kick to Xander's mid section, and continuing up to his chin. Xander couldn't avoid the kick to his right abdomen, but he did moved his head just aside of the kick. Xander lashed out at the same time hitting Ryoga hard on his outstretched legs. Ryoga groaned and took a few steps back, eyeing Xander, who did the same with him. Ryoga then attack, and Xander started the 'Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire' technique. As fast as the fists were, they were useless if aimed at an empty spot. Ryoga had twisted aside and rammed his left knee into Xander's gut, doubling him over. Then with a punch to the face, and a shove, Xander was lying at the foot of a tree.

With a scream of rage Ryoga came at him. "I'm sorry, okay!?" Xander told him sincerely, interrupting Ryoga's attack. The guy looked down at him strangely. "I mean, if I had remembered it were the cursed springs down there I would have caught you. If it had been a lethal, or even a deep enough to seriously hurt, fall I would have caught you. You have to believe that. I have no interest in any kind of killing guy after me; I've got actual demons already trying to kill me." Ryoga stared down at him, anger in his face. "Will you please except my apologies? You know, forgiving is divine, or were that Twinkies?"

Ryoga's mouth twitched for a moment into a smile at Xander's joke, then growled and lowered his fist, saying, "Fine, it's Ranma that's the real bastard anyway, he didn't even bother to apologize, he just tells me it's _/my/_ fault."

Xander got up, smiled, and said, "Great, friends then?" Xander offered his hand, hoping the Japanese guy understood it. Apparently he did because he grasped the hand and shook it powerfully. "Awesome," Xander said with a big smile and leant forward, and told him conspiratorially, "What do you think of the blonde?"

"WHAT!?" Ryoga exclaimed.

"Shh, what do you think?" Xander whispered.

Ryoga looked, then shrugged and said, "She's no Akane."

Xander's smile broadened and said, "You know, love your friendship, but go after the blonde, and nicey nice is over."

"Hey! Who do you think I am!? I don't go after other guy's girls - well, except Akane, but she strictly speaking isn't his," Ryoga protested with an insulted tone.

"I didn't think you would, just so we're clear on this subject," Xander told him with the smile walking back over to the girls.

Deo looked at the ending with disappointed, then again, it seemed on top of martial arts skill son in law also had the skills of a diplomat. Things just kept getting better and better. When she left, Cordelia asked the other two girls, "What do you think Xander is whispering about?"

Willow shrugged, saying, "Beats me."

-----

On their way back to school, Willow decided to ask, "Xander, how about training this afternoon, with Buffy along perhaps, and Lotion. I hate to admit it, but the bitch is a good teacher. Of course I'd like some input from the great, trans-sexual master." Everyone looked at her at that last proclamation. "What?" she asked.

Xander shrugged and said, "Don't you have to tutor that guy?"

Willow shook her head, and explained, "He and his father and mother were in the classroom with Deo. I don't know exactly what happened, but after that he switched schools."

"You're joking, right?" Cordelia asked, as she and Buffy stopped with surprise.

Willow stopped a little later and turned around, shaking her head. Xander stopped another moment later, and then a car drove through a puddle of water next to him. "ACK!" Lexa yelled out, and then looked down at her half-wet top clinging to her breasts. "Damn you, you bastard! Now I'm all wet!" she screamed after the car with a raised fist. Her friends giggled at the newly changed girl, followed up by 'naughty' giggling.

"Huh?"

"Yep," Buffy said. "You're so very _/wet/_."

"Hmm, wet," Willow said taking Lexa in. The girl turned around, hmpfing, and walked on in irritation at the girls' gutter minds. A pretty hot guy walked by, Buffy and Cordelia took him in, while Willow stayed fascinated with Lexa's swaying ass. The guy passed Lexa and she quickly turned around, looking down. Buffy's eyes widened, then shook her head.

"Did you guys see that?" Buffy asked softly in shock.

"See what?" Cordelia asked.

"Nah, it can't be," Buffy said hopefully, softly. She turned to the other girls, and said, "I mean, Xander is straight, Lexa is gay, so it can't be right? It just really can't be. I must have imagined it."

"Imagined what?" Willow asked this time, an irritated Cordelia behind.

"Nah, I just imagined it," Buffy said again, nodded to confirm then started after Lexa. Willow and Cordelia looked at each other, shrugged, and moved after the other two.

The three girls caught up with the former guy, and walked along side him. "Training would be nice," Buffy confirmed, and then added, "but I've got to be on time to pick up the exchange student guy at the bus depot this afternoon. Late afternoon."

"Guy!?" Lexa asked in shock. "You get a _/guy/_ living with you for two weeks." Buffy nodded, Willow and Cordelia watching the exchange. "No, no, no, I forbid it, guy in your room is a big no, no. I mean, all the things he could get to see, and . . ."

"We _/have/_ a guest room," Buffy told him amused.

"Ah, but shower . . ."

"I'll lock the door," Buffy answered her again.

Lexa slumped. He had warded off one guy, now he gets another. Perhaps he should play this guy's girlfriend for two weeks?

-----

Later that day Lexa, Buffy and Willow were at the bus stop, all slightly sweaty from the workout and the walk over here. "Impata!? Impata!? Are you here already? We're on time right?" Buffy asked the other two.

"Actually, we're five minutes late," Willow said looking around.

"Impata!" Lexa called, for good measure adding a slightly seductive tone.

"Uh, yeah, I'm here!" a guy's voice called and a guy emerged from behind a parked bus packed with a suitcase and a backpack. Willow's and Buffy's eyes widened in appreciation, he definitely looked cool.

"Hey, I'm Buffy Summers," Buffy greeted with a big grin.

"And _/I'm/_ Lexa Horne," Lexa said walking over, chest out. Impata's eyes found the bouncing masses of fat and flesh interesting. "Let me help you with that," Lexa said taking a hold of the big scare brown suitcase and lifting the side without wheels easily. Impata looked with wide eyes at the feet, and then back up at Lexa's lovely brown eyes. She brushed some hair back, smiled and said, "You know, your eyes are quite attractive, must be the dark down-south look."

"Uh, thanks, I guess," Impata answered, smiling, while Buffy and Willow scowled at the scene with their arms across their chests.


	11. part 11

"Cordelia!" her mother called out loud. "Would you go and pick up the exchange student please. He'll be arriving in a short while at Sunnydale Private Airport."

"Do I have to?" Cordelia whined with indignation. "I'm just busy trying on my new blouse to test out combinations!"

"Now, Cordelia!" the mother commanded. Grumbling Cordelia got up.

-----

Cordelia leant against the car annoyed, hands folded across her chest. The plane had just landed, and now taxied to where she and her car was waiting. Once it stopped a suave, brunet guy, in wide black pants, and - to Cordelia - a blue wide kimono-like top. Horrible, he _/so/_ needed fashion lessons before she let him be seen with him. She sighed, this was going to take time. He hand a handsome, angular, almost too perfect face though . . . of course, he lacked the Xander quality.

He raised a wooden sword on his shoulder, which made Cordelia raise her eyebrows. He neared her, took a slight bow, and said, "I am Upperclassman Kuno Tatewaki, Furinkan High's Blue Thunder, kendo master, at your service fair lady."

"Cordelia Chase," Cordelia introduced herself bored. "My parents are the ones who volunteered to have you spend time in my house for the duration of your visit. Now, you can hopefully carry your own luggage, Kuno, because I'm not carrying anything."

"Of course not, not such a delicate girl like you, Cordelia-chan, and the name is Tatewaki, not Kuno, we Japanese name our family name first. HURRY UP!" Tatewaki said with a bow.

"Hey!" Cordelia said in protest.

"I apologize, not you great lady," Tatewaki told her, and turned to the plane. "Sasuke! You lazy bum, hurry up!"

"Hai . . ." a squeaky voice called.

"And speak English, we are in America here, peasant boy!" Tatewaki called out with haughty irritation.

"I am sorry, master," the voice called and then several stacked up suitcases with a set of small feet underneath appeared in the doorway of the plane. After some squeezing the stack of suitcases and the little guy carrying them tumbled down the stairs, finally crashing on the ground, groaning. Cordelia watched astonished as the little guy turned out to be wearing some kind of Ninja suit, and had two bunny teeth.

"You clumsy oaf!" Tatewaki called out in irritation. He turned to Cordelia, and said, "I apologize for the ineptness off my servant, Cordelia-chan." Cordelia watched as Tatewaki then turned to his servant, kicked him once, and said, "Do I have to do everything myself!? Can't I for _/once/_ leave something to you, and _/not/_ have you screw things up!? Look how you make me look to the fair Chase-woman!"

"I am sorry, master! I will gather everything quickly," Sasuke groveled and promptly started picking up the four suitcases he had dropped.

Cordelia looked at the scene with wide eyes, thinking, -I've never been _/that/_ bad to any of our servants, or anyone else for that matter.- On the one hand it was a good observation, on the other she was uncomfortable with her own acknowledgment that she treated servants and people 'bad'.

"Master," Sasuke said, "Are you certain Mistress Kodachi agreed with me going along with you?"

"Of course she did, don't be silly, now move," Tatewaki said, pointing the direction for his servant.

-----

Nerima, Tokyo, Japan.

Kuno Estate

"Sasuke! Sasuke! Where are you, you lazy servant! I need to eat, it's late!" Kodachi screamed out through the house. She found herself in the kitchen, with a note lying on the table. She picked it up, and read it:

Kodachi, my beloved sister, I took Sasuke with me on my student exchange trip to America. I'm certain as a woman you can handle yourself on your own in the coming two weeks.

Your loving brother,

Tatewaki

"Tatewaki!! You will pay upon your return for this infraction!!" Kodachi screamed with a balled fist swinging above her head.

-----

Deo's restaurant

Lotion sighed with dreamy eyes. Outside a guy arrived on a bike, and entered the restaurant. He parked himself in a table, and took the menu. After reading through it, Lotion arrived and asked, "What I get for sir?"

"Ah, this seems tasty," he said, and looked up into the green eyes, and beautiful brown hair, and fantastic figure in the sexy waitress uniform of Lotion. Dazzled with her beauty, he looked at her as she wrote down his order. He finally managed to take in her name tag, and said, "Lu-Xion, Lotion, what a beautiful name. I'm Pike, Pike Ambrose, beautiful angel."

Lotion gave a giggle, and said, "You very hungry man, I see. Get food quickly." Lotion then walked away.

"What an angel, what a beauty, I came to see if Buffy . . . but, I'm in love with this hot- . . . what an incredible babe," Pike muttered, utterly and completely in love.

Pike watched Lotion return with his order a few minutes later, and he started eating, keeping close attention to Lotion. He watched her as she serviced other people with a grace and beauty that made him fall only deeper for the lovely girl. Soon she had brought everyone just newly arrived their orders, and stayed behind the counter while she had nothing to do. He heard her sigh once more, and she said softly, "Why so cruel! Found great, great man, but he interested in pig-nosed girl. Perhaps smash my nose in?" At first Pike's spirits crashed and burned, then they soared high again when he heard the guy had someone else. "Xander my fiance, and now not want me."

"WHAT!?" Pike called out in rage, getting up, and pushing the chair back. Everyone looked at him, and then Pike walked over to Lotion. "Are you telling me, this guy is your fiance but is chasing another girl!?" Lotion nodded sadly. "That- that- . . . evil- . . . son of a- . . ." Pike growled out. "Someone who dares to do that to a beautiful, innocent girl like you! He deserves punishment! Who is he!?"

Lotion pulled out a picture of Xander smiling and showing his muscled arms, she, her mother, or someone had taken of him, and she said, "Xander Harris, greatest man alive."

Pike took the picture, and imprinted Xander's face in his mind, then said, "This guy shall pay. Do you know where he is?"

Lotion blinked somewhat confused, and answered, "Sunnydale Highschool. How much he owe you? I willing- . . ."

"Plenty!" Pike said, dumped the money for his food on the counter and ran out the restaurant - having the audacity to seduce the beautiful Lotion, ask her to marry him, and then casually go out with other girls - this Harris owed him plenty indeed, and he would pay - with interest.

Lotion turned around put her head in the kitchen, and said, "Mother, Xander needs money."

"Oh, you foolish child," Deo said shaking her head. "'Making someone pay' is an English expression, it means punishing someone for something, usually hurting them a lot by beating them up."

"Oh! Xander!" Lotion said in shock.

"Don't worry, that fool won't even be able to lay one finger on Xander," Deo said with a smile. Lotion sighed in relief. "Unless he has a gun, shoots from afar, and has good aim," Deo added suddenly realizing they were in America and the guy was a vagrant on a bike. Lotion sucked in a sudden breath. Then Deo said, "Don't worry, Lotion, I'm sure he doesn't." Lotion let out her breath, and once she was out of the kitchen, Deo said to herself, "Better make sure he doesn't."

Indeed, that night Deo found Pike sleeping in a sleeping bag, using the tank of his bike as a pillow, and she searched him, finding no gun, only stakes and crossbows. Satisfied, she left Pike alone.

-----

Ampata was happy to be in America, and happy to be driven to school along with Buffy by her mom. She could make an amazing breakfast, he had learned that morning. Once out of the car though, he had become even more happy when the nice Willow, and the amazing, hot, incredible Lexa Horne joined them; wearing a short skirt, high heals, and a low-cut, bellybutton-showing blouse that had him practically drooling. That she hooked her arm in his, and told him he looked so handsome made his head swell with pride, much to Willow's and Buffy's annoyance, but he didn't notice that.

"Why th-thank you, Lexa, you look amazing yourself," Ampata managed to get out.

"No . . . you really think so? You flirt you," Lexa told him with shy smile, making sure her breasts were prominently on display. Buffy and Willow looked at the scene with more and more steamed faces.

"Sorry," a guy said when he accidently bumped against Buffy.

"Hey!" Buffy said with annoyance, between Xander putting herself on display for Ampata and being bumped she was seriously pissed off. She looked back at the guy just bumping past her like she was worth shit. He was scanning the crowd intently, student per student. "Now, you wait and . . ." Buffy halted and her three companions stood behind her, waiting expectantly as to why Buffy had suddenly stopped. "Pike!?" Buffy asked in shock, recognizing him.

Willow's eyes frown for a moment, and then widened, while Lexa and Ampata looked confused. "_/The/_ Pike?" Willow asked in shock, "Your first boyfriend, not popularity politics?"

Buffy nodded. Willow grew excited. Ampata still looked confused, and Lexa's face crunched up first in recognition and then in annoyance. She still remembered the jealousy he had felt last year when Willow had pressured Buffy into spilling about her first boyfriend, and the gushing confession 'how brave, and those eyes, and that goatee and . . .' Ugh, it still made her sick. A further glimpse of her thoughts would reveal, -Oh, just fucking great. What is this anyway? I get rid of the lying, pedophile, sicko vampire, and Buffy suddenly looks at Ryoga's bare chest. I make sure he's out of the picture, and this fool comes along; I get rid of him, and her first love returns? This ain't normal! Is she like a guy magnet or something?- Lexa looked up at the sky for a moment, and thought darkly, -You hate me, don't you!? Don't dare deny it!-

Pike though hadn't recognized Buffy, he just kept scouring the students. "Hey, Pike! I'm here! . . . Hello, your ex-girlfriend Buffy Summers is right behind you, you know? Did you came here for me?"

Pike finally acknowledged her - by putting his right hand over his shoulder in a halt-sign, and saying, "Not now, Buffy, this is important."

-Yes!- Lexa thought breaking in a smile and having all eyes for Ampata again, as Willow and Buffy looked dumbfounded.

"Okay," Buffy said softly, hurt, placing herself next to him, and asking. "Slayer here, remember, I can help. Are you looking for a vamp- . . . no: day - a demon then, a shapeshifter?"

"Worse," Pike answered, while Willow looked panicked from Buffy to Ampata. Obviously getting the cold shoulder from the first love she broke up with to start over with nothing reminding her of vampires, and as a result had cried for days as she had told Willow and Xander a year earlier, had thrown her for enough of a loop she had forgotten about Ampata.

Ampata looked with a frown up at Lexa, asking softly, "Demons?"

While he did that, Buffy's brow furrowed in confusion, and asked, "Principal Snyder?"

Lexa answered the Latin boy, "Ah, Sunnydale slang for a real bastard, not an _/actual/_ demon of course, 'cause that would be crazy." She added a fake chuckle, and Ampata smile, apparently buying the bullshit.

"Don't be such highschool girl, Buffy, I'm here looking for a guy, one specific guy, and I will make him pay," Pike said and then left Buffy and her friends behind.

"What was that about?" Buffy asked perturbed at Pike casually leaving her behind.

"He's a bastard, a bum, and a biker, he wears cow skins," Willow supplied meanly, and Buffy looked at her. Willow shrugged and wrapped Buffy in a hug. "He'll come apologize, or you kick his ass," Willow said with comfort, and Buffy nodded sadly, but happy in the hug.

-----

"Pig-nosed girl!! Willow!" Lotion called out loud, as the four of them walked through Sunnydale High's crowded corridors, Willow trying to comfort the blonde - who instead of the usual getting angry, just became more depressed. Lotion caught up as they turned, and she said, "Have you seen Xander? Oh, girl-type."

"Girl-type?" Ampata asked once more in confusion. America was such a strange place. Lexa just made a point at Lotion, and then circled the same finger next to the temple of her head. Ampata then looked back and took in the other, _/another/_, beautiful, sexy girl, in rather figure-hugging clothes, but completely unlike any of the other clothes he had seen girls wear. America may be a strange place, but it was a blessed place.

Meanwhile Lotion took in Lexa's attire, all skirts and feminine, no real way she could be Xander anytime so, so the threat of the guy of yesterday was rather slim. "Uh, then not important, I guess, uh, well, see you later, I have other class, bye," Lotion then turned around and walked off, muttering under her breath, "Stupid Pike on bike - he shoots my Xander I will kill."

"What was that all about?" Willow wondered in confusion.

"I have no idea," Buffy muttered in confusion and looked up at Lexa.

"Well, don't look at me," Lexa said with unknowing tone. "Go ask her."

"Let's just go on," Willow suggested and the group turned around. "We finished telling you about . . ."

"Buffy! Willow! Lexa!"

"What now?" Buffy asked defeated and saw Cordelia, her sheep, and a guy in white and blue leather jacket, and in blue jeans come around the corner. He actually wasn't that bad looking, if one forget the arrogant look in his eyes, and his _/way/_ over-styled wavy hair. Ampata's eyes widened as the five girls, each just has hot, as the girl that had just left appeared on his eyes. Only this heavenly creature that had taken such a liking to him was sexier. He was seriously considering moving to America permanently.

"Buffy, how are you, oh, is this your exchange student, kind of a chump isn't he, although he does have the Latin thing going for him," Cordelia said taking in Ampata, hating the fact that Buffy had gotten just a hot guy as she, but worse that Lexa, or rather Xander was fawning over the guy, instead of being Xander and fawning over her. The Cordettes nodded, looking around to see if they could spot the Cordelia-outed hottest guy in America, who in his female guise felt nervous remembering a few days earlier them chasing him in the mall. "Now, if you take mine, just look at . . ."

"LEXA, MY LOVE!" a voice screamed, pissing off Cordelia at the interruption.

"Oh, no, not him again," Lexa muttered, and turned around. The guy in his red football jacket, holding a large bear in his hand was already close by. Everyone - Willow, Ampata and Buffy with large eyes - looked at the guy step resolutely up close. Lexa realized Ampata could actually come in handy.

"My love, I've bought you this great token of my appreciation, every girl likes a huggable bear. Go with me to the costumed dance," Deke Fisher asked Lexa.

"Oh, I'm sorry, but already got my huggy, snuggums, bear," Lexa said sweetly, hugging Ampata closely into her breasts, steaming Willow, Buffy and Cordelia greatly. "This is Ampata, Buffy's exchange student, for the next to weeks we shall have a passionate, incredible love affair that is worthy of songs, operas even. Then he will return home, and we both will be heartbroken. It will the kind of love affair that those fantastic romantic movies are made about, that has every girl weeping throughout the movie, and on the ride back home. You understand, don't you, Deke? For the next two weeks, you're not even a blip on my radar, I will only have eyes for my great, immortal love, so you might as well give up for the next two weeks, and try to cash in on my heartbroken state afterwards." Everyone looked at Lexa in shock, apart from Ampata who just smiled contently between her breasts. Lexa had thought that kept the halfwit of her back for two weeks, nothing would be further from the truth.

"WHAT!?" Deke yelled out in anger. "Stupid Latin bastard, isn't here for a whole day and he's already stealing, red-blooded Americans' girlfriends. You will pay for this, you bastard. I will pound into the ground for this, slam and tackle . . ." Ampata looked fearful, Lexa, Willow and Buffy annoyed, the first ready to beat the crap out of Deke if he dared lay a finger on the exchange student - the footballer was truly stupid.

Deke took a step forward, but defense came from a very unexpected source. A wooden Katana was placed in between the girls and the football fool. "Stand back, peasant," Tatewaki said with a superior air. "It's obvious the lovely lady has lost her heart to my fellow exchange student. I, as heir to the Kuno estate, and thus having good manners, cannot let you harbor ill will to their happiness, however short they both know it will be. To wish to burden a young woman's heart with even greater ill in a knowingly doomed love affair, can only come from the lowest of the low. If you had grace, you would have waited the short while."

Deke of course, would not take such insults. **"-DO YOU KNOW WHO I AM!?-"** Deke snarled in rage.

"Indeed, a pig with no manners, and no control over his liquids," Tatewaki answered calmly, superiorly wiping away a drop from his left shoulder, the little display now having gathered a huge crowd, watching at the spectacle with wonder, secretly placing bets on who would win.

**"-WHAT!? _/AAAIII/_ am Deke Fisher, Sunnydale High's Red Streak Star Quarterback! No one dares to insult me like this!"** Deke hissed out in rage.

"I see, not only are you a pig with no matters, you are also an untalented, unskilled peasant, wearing a ridiculous armor and helmet, running around after an oval-shaped, leather thing like a chicken without a head," Tatewaki sated far superiorly, having many students, especially those not interested in sports snicker, even Cordelia, this time actually loving the superior attitude. Willow, Buffy, Lexa and Ampata just looked with disbelief. "Then you should know, that _/I/_ am Tatewaki Kuno, Furinkan High's Blue Thunder, kendo master extra-ordinaire, four time consecutive winner of the Tokyo district kendo championships. I could turn you into shis kebab with his wooden sword without having to open my eyes."

With a roar Deke attacked, and found himself a moment later crashed painfully against the lockers, groaning as the wooden sword pushed into his left shoulder, and dropping the bear on the floor. "I suggest you leave while I am still in good spirits, low class scum," Kuno stated calmly, with a roar of approval from every nerd in the vicinity.

Buffy though had finally reached her fill with male testosterone around her. First there was Ampata drooling after Lexa, who was Xander, then Pike's brush off, and now this. "THAT'S IT!!" she screamed in utter anger, stepping in between the two. "You are a fool, Lexa wouldn't date you if her life depended on it. And you!" Buffy pushed Tatewaki hard enough he stumbled backward into the lockers on the other side of the hall. "You Japanese, macho sexist! You just have to interfere and come to the rescue the 'little girl', huh? Well, I have you know, Lexa could have handled this easy herself, she would have kicked his, _/and/_ your ass!" Buffy turned around in anger, with Tatewaki following her with his eyes astonished. "Come on, guys! We've got a class to get to, and this place stinks of testosterone!" Willow nodded, in agreement.

Lexa said, "But it's the first time a guy stood up for me . . ." Buffy and Willow glared at him, and he shut up, quickly placing Ampata between him and the other two, hugging him close.

The group of students dispersed, Deke rubbed his shoulder and giving a glare at Tatewaki he left, taking the bear with him, and grumbling about revenge. Cordelia and her Cordettes rejoined with Tatewaki as he stepped out in the corridor. Cordelia said, "Well, I think it's refreshing for a change, a man with some gallantly left." Her minions nodded dutifully.

Tatewaki's gaze though, was focused on the retreating form with golden hair of Buffy Summers. He smiled brightly, feeling as if the Gods' shiny radiance itself reflecting off her hair. "What a girl, what beautiful eyes, what cheekbones," he took a step forward, as Cordelia and co looked from him to the retreating foursome. "Such golden locks, those penetrating, deep, yet soft eyes, such beauty . . . no! I can't! I mustn't! What would Akane say! Or the pig-tailed girl! I mustn't, I shouldn't! I can't cheat on my eternal loves, I . . . shall . . ." Tatewaki then raised his right hand holding his kendo sword high in the air, crying out like a wounded animal, "Curse this heart of mine!" He sank to his knees, tears forming in his eyes, saying again, "Curse this heart that has so much love to give! Who is she!?"

Cordelia looked at the guy with a dropped jaw; this was nuts even for her. "Huh?"

"The short-statured, golden-locked, blonde angel from heaven," Tatewaki asked with pain in his eyes.

"Buffy? Buffy Summers? The girl that pushed you around?" Cordelia asked in shock.

"Yes! Buffy Summers! My love, my eternal sunshine! I love thee for now and ever! I must make you mine, no Akane, or the pigtailed girl! I'm a cursed individual with such a heart!" Tatewaki cried out, and then stood up gently. "I shall have to live with this, make the right choice, indeed." He then walked forward, a few moments later followed by a dumbfounded Cordelia and her sheep.

-----

Outside, Pike sat on the ground, leaning against a tree, looking angrily at the school. "Figures, that a bastard like that would cut classes," he said pissed off. "No matter, sooner or later he will come to school, and then he's mine."

Author's notes:

Well, I hope the humor worked. A short note on Kuno's 'love' for Buffy, I came to the realization that both Akane and Ranma are short, spunky, tough, and strong girls, which of course exactly fits Buffy, I thought he'd fall in love with another girl fitting his 'type'. So now he has the primary colors complete: blue, red, yellow/blonde. ::chuckles::


	12. part 12

At lunch time the five of them were sitting at a table. Buffy, Lexa, Willow, Ampata and Lotion. For once, Lotion wasn't the one being glared at. This time it was Lexa and Ampata, because the first was overly clingy to the latter. While Lexa was cutely feeding Ampata, Tatewaki coolly swaggered over, holding a bush of flowers. Everyone looked at him in surprise, even more so when he knelt down right in front of Buffy. He held out the bush of flowers and said, "Beautiful Buffy Summers . . ." Lexa narrowed his eyes at him in utter frustration. If it wasn't the ex-boyfriend, it was this fool. Willow and Lotion looked surprised, and Buffy did along with a tinge of flattery. ". . . I, Tatewaki Kuno, have looked upon your splendor, and have beheld the sparkling of the sun. Accept this token of affection, will you please date me."

Buffy looked at him with mouth agape, flattered, but not attracted to the guy. Two other men held her attractions - or rather one man and one vampire. "Ah, uh, Tatewki, I-uh, I'm very flattered, but-uh . . . I'm sorry, I'm already interested in somebody else."

Tatewaki's head fell, and then he looked up, saying with tears flowing from his eyes, "Oh, cruel, cruel fate, why dost thou bestow this upon me." Wailing he lunged forward and grabbed Buffy around her waist, pressing his head against her breasts, and while he rubbed it back and forth he said, "Oh, gorgeous Buffy, please, change your mind. I shall make your life easy, I will love you . . ."

At the moment Tatewaki hugged her and pressed his head to her breasts, everyone - which included Buffy and the rest of the people in the lunchroom - looked at his action shocked. Then Buffy screamed, drowning out Tatewaki's speech, "AAAAH!!! He's . . . he's . . . aaah!"

Lexa got up, and slammed her fist in the back of Tatewaki's head, making him bite his tongue, and then jump up with a cry of pain. Buffy hugged herself, shivering, and Willow quickly went over to comfort her. Lexa and Tatewaki stood across from each other, the latter holding the back of his head in pain. "You perverted, son of a- . . ." Lexa started growl, while the lunchroom looked on, including Ampata who looked with large eyes.

Tatewaki forcefully interrupted her, pulling out his wooden katana, and hissed, "You cheap, crude girl! How dare you come between me and my eternal love!?" Lexa gave a growl, and Tatewaki charged, stabbing his blade forward to fast it was a blur. Lexa side stepped, her arm over the blade and punched Tatewaki in his gut, doubling him over with a groan.

With a roar of rage she added an uppercut. He shot up into the air, and crashed through the weak ceiling. "Familiar . . ." he muttered as he flew upward, and then he groaned in pain as he crashed with his back into the ceiling above that, stayed put. "Not familiar . . ." he muttered breathlessly and fell back down. "Aah!" he said, slamming painfully back onto the floor, staying down on his stomach. "Sturdy ceilings over here," he muttered and then slumped further.

Everyone looked at the out-cold, Japanese guy, while Lexa crushed her teeth, muttering, "That chauvinistic Neanderthal, perverted pig, sickening bastard." She then reached down and grabbed him by his hair, pulling his upper body up. She turned to a calmed down Buffy, and he said loudly, "Come on, Buff, for once that troll Snyder can do something _/for/_ us instead of against us." As Lexa started walking, dragging the half conscious Kuno along, Buffy nodded and got up. Quickly followed by the rest of the group and some other people having been witness, not wanting to miss this for anything.

Lexa dragged him into Principal Snyder's office. "What's the meaning of this!? Summers, you- . . ." the troll started snapping.

"Quiet!" Lexa snapped back and dumped Kuno in a chair where he slowly started coming around. "That bastard here molested Buffy there. What are you going to do about it?"

"Summers, what did you do to provoke this poor exchange student!?" Snyder yelled at Buffy.

"WHAT!?!?!?" all the students screamed at Snyder who backed up at the outburst.

Lotion stepped forward and snarled, "Pig-nosed girl did nothing but say no to date, and curd attacked her. Are you saying, men have right to molest, when girl says no to date!?"

Willow and everyone looked at her, all somewhat thinking along the same lines, 'She's got some female pride after all.'

With folded arms, Lexa added, "And he's not poor, he said he was the 'heir to the Kuno estate'."

"Uhm, uhm . . . I'm sure you misunderst- . . ." Snyder started.

"It's true! I didn't misunderstand anything, he just pushed his face in my breasts for no reason," Buffy told him angrily.

"They're telling the truth, Principal," Jenny Calendar said, entering the office. "I saw it happen too."

Snyder groaned, annoyed that he couldn't bust Buffy for this. "I will reprimand him, now out!"

The students left his office, and Snyder took in the once more clear-headed Kuno. "Now, young man," Snyder told the Japanese rich kid. "You listen here. You cannot go around grabbing girls. I do not know how things go in your country, but here that is a big no-no. You do this again, I will have no other choice but to call the police, and someone up in the hierarchy will undoubtedly come get you from prison and ship you back to . . ." Snyder frowned, shifted to a few of his pages, and having found the right one, he added, ". . . . Japan."

"I apologize deeply for the infraction, it will not happen again, I promise," Tatewaki said, and took a bow after getting up. Snyder then let him go, grinding his teeth in annoyance.

-----

By the end of school day they came across Pike still sitting at the tree. "Pike?" Buffy asked him.

"Huh?" Pike answered.

"What are you still doing here?" Buffy asked him concerned, and somewhat pained.

"Waiting for a guy," Pike answered. Buffy hesitated for a moment, and then she and her friends walked on. Only Lotion stayed behind.

Once they were out of earshot, Lotion said, "You not shoot Xander."

Pike looked up at her, and said, "Huh?" Then what she said registered, and he said, "Of course not, my beautiful Angel! I don't even own a gun. All I'm going to do is talk, and if that doesn't work, beat some sense it into him, so he'll marry you, and you can be happy!"

Lotion blinked at that, processed it, and then said, "Oh, well, you do that." Lotion then walked away smiling; with a bit of luck the guy would succeed in the talking sense part.

-----

Willow was home already. Lexa, Buffy and Ampata reached Buffy's house, and they walked up to the door. Lexa said goodbye to Buffy, telling her not to forget training that night, and to Ampata with a kiss on the cheek, and waved them inside. Once they were from sight, Lexa turned around and walked back down the path. Once he reached the height of the tree he walked over to it and smashed his palm into it. "Whoa, whoa, waaaahh!!" With a dull sound a small man holding a camera lay on the ground. He was wearing an odd approximation of a ninja suit, that didn't manage to cover his face and was a dull purple instead of a more likely black.

"Who are you, and _/what/_ are you doing here?" Lexa asked him with narrowed eyes.

Shivering the little guy spoke, "I'm Sasuke Sarugakure, and . . . and . . ."

Lexa snatched the camera from him and looked at him with narrowed eyes. "I do believe Cordelia told me Kuno had a ninja for a servant," she said as she examined the camera.

The little guy went to his knees and said, "Master Kuno did indeed send me. Please return my camera. If I don't succeed I'll be punished."

"He asked you to take nude pictures of Buffy!?" Lexa hissed in anger.

"Not nude pictures, just a few so he could admire her!" Sasuke pleaded desperately. Lexa growled and crushed the camera with one hand. "No!" Sasuke called out in horror.

Lexa grabbed him by his head, lifted him up, and kicked him away like a football. She called after him, "If you want to make pictures make them while she walks on the street, that way you don't have to hide either, asshole!!!"

"That annoying little," Lexa hissed, as she started walking to her home. "Now, let's see, should I kick Kuno's ass for this, or does he just have an inept and perverted little servant?" she wondered.

-----

"Yah!" Buffy screamed as she threw her punch. It deflected off of Xander's upper left hand and he twisted into her defense. She jumped back, but he attacked onward. She deflected a blow from him, and grabbed his next punch. He went down though, much to her shock, hitting her legs just above her knees twice with a rapid succession of four kicks with his right leg, making her groan in pain and wobble imbalanced. Then he placed both his feet in her stomach while he still shoved forward, and pulling her along by the hand that was meant to be holding him. She felt his energy accumulate at his feet on her stomach, and she muttered, "Oh, boy." A moment later she was launched across Xander's small gym, only to smack painfully against the wall. "Ow," she said as she slid down and landed on her back and side.

Xander chuckled as he came walking over, taking in Buffy again: her tight workout top left her bellybutton bare, and the tight workout pants were slick in parts with sweat.. Offering his hand he said, "You're getting a lot better, Buffy."

"Easy for you to say," Buffy muttered, taking Xander in. His shorts left his legs bare, his muscled legs, and the shirt was sleeveless - only two straps over his shoulders, allowing her to see his muscled arms and the upper part of his chest. He looked good enough to eat. She grabbed his hand and let herself be pulled up. At the same time she rubbed her sore head, and asked, "Before this, all the martial arts I was taught I did in an instant. But now I still keep getting my ass kicked. Any ideas why that is?" She looked up at him, straight in his very close smiling face and chocolate brown eyes. His scent assaulted her senses, his ver sweaty sent, his oh so masculine sent, and now she was captured by his eyes too. -Bad Buffy!! Look away, look away - damn, those eyes,- she thought feeling a tingling in her gut, and slowly starting to spread.

Xander shrugged, and said, "Like I told you, you aren't as skilled as you think you are. You were fast though, so I guess those who weren't as fast and couldn't follow, thought you and Slayers before you were very good. Plus, don't you have those dreams that are memories of previous Slayers?" Buffy nodded, feeling her lips quirk up, captivated by his explanation, or was it just him. Her eyes flicked for a moment to his muscled arms, with just a light film of sweat on them. She felt the tingling go down toward . . . oh, no, Willow, think Willow! Xander continued, "I guess that means you've got access to their skill as well, before you just got theirs. Now you're being taught something no Slayer before has done; it will take time even for you, although you're definitely going faster anyone else would, and a lot faster than I am if that hyena spirit hadn't dumped a shitload of chi in my body."

"Yeah, I guess so," Buffy muttered, thinking, -Look away, look away.- She breathed in through her nose, and his sent assaulted her senses again. -Oh, god!- No! She just _/couldn't/_ get wet right now. She just couldn't grow that aroused. She fidgeted, feeling the tingling spread, her nipples harden. -Oh, no, don't step closer,- Buffy thought as Xander got a little closer. She took a step back.

Xander was looking into her eyes. Those beautiful deep pools of blue, that cute nose. God, she was so sexy, so beautiful. She chewed her lip, he didn't know why, but it only made her look all the more sexy. What was that look in her eye? Was it the same attraction he felt? He felt a nervousness in the pit of his stomach, felt himself grow erect. So close the sent of her sweat assaulted his nose. She smelt so good, so incredibly arousing; a hint of something he hadn't ever smelled before. "Buffy," he said softly, while he saw her head shake left and right just a tiny little bit. Of its own accord his right arm moved around her waist.

-Oh, god! No! Willow! I can't do this!- Buffy thought desperately while she felt herself grow more and more aroused, felt butterflies flutter in her stomach, the same butterflies she felt around Angel, only less powerful - except, except, were they growing stronger for Xander by the moment? Yes, they were! And they were fueling her sexual arousal even more. Hearing him say her name just now had sent chills down her spine, so much promise in that one word, just her name. And his arm wrapping around her waist, part of her body just automatically leaned into it. She shouldn't! She shouldn't! Damn, why felt that arm so good, the muscles pushing against the small of her back.

Xander pulled her a little closer, and said with a husky voice that raised Buffy's spirits even more, "I'm in love you with you, have been for a very long time." A moment later his lips touched hers, while she had her arms tightly between them, the only defense for Willow she could muster. His lips felt searing hot, passionate, hungry. His tongue entered her mouth, hot, wet, and demanded her tongue's attention. She felt herself grow hot throughout in an instant, as a tiny part of her kissed back just a bit. This was so different than kisses with Angel; he was cold, perhaps he could even be called clammy. This was a raging inferno of passion she had never felt before. Not with the boys that had been prestige dates for popularity, and not even with Pike. She supposed she had never trained with him like this, never had her inner Slayer fighting passions so stimulated before kissing him. She often found herself . . . 'needy' after a fight, and she had guessed it was the Slayer inside her, not herself.

Oh, god, her panties had to be drenched, judging by what she felt down there. She'd never been this aroused before, not _/before/_ she started ma- . . . -No! Don't think like that! Willow! Can't hurt Willow! Willow, your friend!- She broke the kiss reluctantly. The two teens looking deeply into each other's eyes, eyes filled with passion, love and _/lust/_. Buffy shook her head. Her eyes widened with shock as she felt a _/bulge/_ press against her, followed by a new burst of lust inside her own body. "W-we can't, Xander," Buffy said, trying to walk back, but he kept her put. "Willow- . . ."

" . . . I love very, very much, but I'm not in love with her," Xander answered her, his breath quickening. Dang, he wondered, since when was he such a smooth-talker? He was certain he'd be stuttering the first word normally, except this wasn't normal was it? He was burning with passion, and so was she, and he just needed this, _/now/_, and it just spilled out - he wasn't thinking, he was just doing. "I'm not her boyfriend, Buffy. Is it fair too keep her best friends miserable just because she's got a thing for one of them?"

Damn, that was some logic. Buffy looked desperate. She wanted him. She wanted Xander Harris! And she wanted him now! "Will- . . ." she managed to get out before Xander placed another searing, hot passionate kiss on her lips, and further behind them. -I'm sorry, Willow, Angel,- she thought, feeling her hunger grow by the moment. -I can't resist.- She grabbed his shirt and yanked it over his head, forcing the two of them apart. Throwing his shirt aside, she admired his chest with a light covering of hair for a fleeting moment, and then looked up in his eyes. A moment later her top went flying, and while kissing each other hungrily they pulled down each other's pants at the same time maneuvering to the middle of the small gym. They paused to untie their laces, then - kissing again - kicked them off and their pants followed.

He wore briefs under his light work out pants, boxer shorts being too cumbersome with basically another pair of boxers above them. Their hungry kissing continued as they sank against each other down to the floor. God, his chest hair rubbing against her nipples and breasts felt so good. When they were on their knees they pulled off each others remaining underwear. His briefs went quickly. He held her wet panties up, smiling at her, and she looked embarrassed for a moment. Then he tossed them aside and pulled her down to the matt, kissing her hungrily, letting his hands roam over her body.

Her grabbed her breasts and stopped for a moment. -I'm holding Buffy's breasts!- he thought with a shock, getting nervous. Her needy moan, and one hand rubbing his chest, his pecks, and the other encouragingly grabbing his back, snapped the nervousness right back out, as his fiery passion returned with a vengeance, setting him aflame. Her rubbed, and massaged her orbs, kneaded them.

"Mmh," she moaned, that felt nice. Then he went down with his hands, while his mouth came down, kissing and licking her breasts and nipples, drawing more moans from Buffy. His hunger was too great to let him linger. He moved down, kissing and licking her taut belly, her bellybutton and further down, until his nose fully took in the sent of her wetness.

-----NC-17 part on my website----

He looked at Buffy's flushed body. Her eyes were closed as she breathed hard, much to his disappointment. Gently he pulled out, and came to the realization they hadn't used any condoms. "Fuck," he cursed lightly as he lay down next her, noticing the small amount of blood on his now flaccid penis. There were a few drops on her vagina as well.

Buffy opened her eyes and turned her head to regard him. "Was I good?" she asked uncertain.

Xander chuckled, and as he rubbed her tummy he told her, "Buff, you were amazing. And me?"

"Oh, god, yes," Buffy answered and then looked confused at him.

"We weren't safe," he said slightly fearfully.

"Shit," Buffy whispered looking down at herself. "I'll have to get a morning-after pill." She frowned and looked at him, "Your were still a virgin, right? No Chinese girls?" He shook his head. "Then diseases shouldn't be a problem," she said with relief, putting her head back down on the mat. The not so pleasant possibilities of the incredibly pleasant action they just undertook made her think of more unpleasant consequences. "Oh, god, Willow, what am I going to tell her? I'm evil," Buffy said out loud, guilt starting to eat away at her.

Xander pulled her into a spoon-position hug, and whispered, "She'll get over it, and she'll forgive you. She knows I wanted you for so long, she won't be able to hold a grudge, she's my best friend too you know. She wants me happy as well."

Buffy bit her lip, and whispered, "And Angel?"

"What has he got to do with it?" Xander asked putt off.

Buffy turned and looked at him. "I've fallen in love with you," Buffy said truthfully, the flutters in her stomach attesting to that. "A few weeks ago, probably. But I still love Angel too, I'm sorry, I can't help it. I feel guilty toward him too."

Xander gave a hurt sound, while his heart crumbled, and he said, "But you're broken up, you're not even a couple anymore."

"I'm sorry, can you forgive me?" Buffy asked, hurt.

He put her face against hers, and said, "Sure, but I still can't see what you see in the lying, manipulating coward. Will you please get over him soon?"

Buffy sank deeper against him, then pulled back and said, "Why do you always have to be so denigrating to him?"

"I'm not, it's the truth!" Xander protested getting angry, the pain in his heart that she still loved the corpse after sharing this making him lash out. "He was hiding in the damn shadows all the time before vacation. I had to drag his dead ass out of his couch at cross point to get him to lead me to you when you faced the master. Then when I performed CPR on you, the bastard said I had to do it because he didn't have any breath! He speaks doesn't he! His body doesn't need to take out oxygen. He'd be better at it. And if he really couldn't, he could still have done the heart contraction, and he wouldn't do that either! He risked your life so he could look good to you instead of admitting he didn't know CPR, so I could have given him pointers!"

"You're lying!" Buffy said, sitting up, upset and angry.

"I'm not lying!" Xander exclaimed angrily getting up, and Buffy followed him. "What is it!? What is it about the corpse that has you so infatuated with you think your best friend would be lying to you about this!?"

"Perhaps because he's so strong he doesn't need to lie!" Buffy accused, not knowing why she was getting so worked up about this, why the tears tung in her eyes, why Xander was so angry after they shared this.

Xander laughed, the pain in his heart growing that Buffy still considered Mr. Demon-animated Corpse stronger than him. "That's rich, I can kick his ass whenever the hell I want to!" Xander called out, wanting to stop, but not being able to. Something irrational inside him wanted to hurt the girl that was hurting him so now, even if he loved her. "In fact, I did!"

Buffy shrank back, grabbed up some of her clothes, as she asked, "What did you do!?"

"You really want to know!?" Xander told her grimacing, hurting more that she apparently felt the need to get away and get dressed.

"Yes, I want to know!" Buffy said as she got her bag, and pulled out her regular clothes rapidly. She wanted to get out of her before she started crying. She wanted to just put distance between them. This had been such a mistake! She felt crushed, guilt overwhelming her, guilt for Willow, guilt for Angel, and guilt for Xander that she had let her passions get the better of her, and she had done this with him before she had banished Angel out of her system.

"I kicked his ass the moment I got back to Sunnydale, confronted him on his lying manipulating ways, made him see how bad he was for you, and told him if he didn't break up with you, I'd dust him! _/That's/_ what I did!" Xander told her, feeling his heart break in a million pieces at the sight on her face.

"You didn't!" Buffy said, shaking her head, pulling a shirt of her head. "You didn't!"

"I did," Xander said softly.

"You bastard! You fucking bastard!" Buffy screamed stuffing her workout clothes into the bag, and walking to the door. "I can't believe you did that! You destroyed what had with him, just because you wanted me! You sick . . . you . . ."

"That's _/not/_ why I did it!" Xander protested desperately. "He was a liar and a manipulator! A 240-year-old coward who went after a sixteen-year-old girl!"

"Like you're any better!" Buffy shot back, before she could pull it back. Deep down she knew it wasn't true, just like she knew Angel wasn't as bad as Xander made him out to be, even if he _/had/_ lied. The pain he saw in his eyes at that accusation hurt her just as much, but her anger quenched it aside. She ran out of his apartment and slammed the door closed behind her.

Xander started pacing back and forth through his apartment, naked, feeling pain and desperation mount in him. He ran his hand through his hair in frustration, and finally he lashed out. He slammed his fist into his wall, making a good dent, and then he sank to his knees, crying. He sobbed deeply, tears streaming down his face, shaking his head 'no'. This just couldn't be happening, it just couldn't. He rolled up in a fetal position, crying even deeper, going over what had just occurred. Then he mumbled, "I'm not like my father, I'm not like my father. I'm not like him."

-----

Outside, Buffy leaned back against the door, sobbing. Tears ran down her face, shaking her head, mumbling, "This can't be happening. It just can't. It was so good." Then she quickly walked away, heading for home, crying all the way. Why had she done it? What did he have to look and smell so good? She was in love with him, she knew, but she was angry with him, and she was pretty certain he didn't want her back anyway, after calling him no better than Angel. She kept going over the scene; why had he gotten . . . oh . . . What if he had told her; 'This was great, Buff, but I just fell in love with Lotion, you know, you wouldn't mind sharing me with her till I can make up my mind, do you?' New sobs came from the depth of her being, and she sank to her knees, saying, "My fault, all my fault. Why? Why couldn't I have controlled myself. Stupid, stupid! You screwed this all up . . . Willow . . . oh, god, Willow!"

A new wave of guilt crashed down over her and she got up, crying, running in a different direction. She had to confess, Willow had to forgive her, she just had to.

A few minutes later, Willow's mother opened up the front door. "I need to speak to Willow," Buffy said, teary-eyed, dropping her bag to the ground.

"I guess- . . ."

"Thanks," Buffy said and walked passed her without much thought. She stumbled up the stairs and went into Willow's room.

Willow was a little startled as her door opened, and concerned as a tear-stained Buffy entered her room. "Buffy!? What's wrong!? What happened?"

The guilt threatened to crush Buffy as she choked out, "Willow, I- . . . Oh, god Willow."

"What!? What is it!?" Willow asked, searching into Buffy's crying eyes, getting very, very concerned now, fearful even. Was Xander hurt? Or Giles? Who? What? Where?

"Please, forgive me, Willow. You have to forgive me," Buffy cried out, hoping.

"What? What do you mean!?" Willow asked, getting an inkling, starting to feel a pull down into a black abyss.

Buffy saw Willow already putting things together. She sank to her knees, crying harder and said, "It's my fault, all my fault, please forgive me. I'm so sorry. You have to, please?"

Buffy watched Willow grow pale, and she demanded, "What is it, Buffy? What is it? Tell me now!"

Buffy choked on a few sobs, and said, "I-I . . . f-forgive me . . . I-I'm s-s-sorry, I sl-sl-sl-slept with Xander." Buffy watched as Willow went rigid. "I had sex with him. We w-were training, and h-h-he s-sm-smelled so good, a-a-and I c-c-couldn't resist." Buffy crawled forward, grabbing for Willow's hand looking pleadingly.

Willow pulled her hand away and angrily said, "You bitch!"

"N-no, please forgive. I'm s-s-so sorry. W-will never happen again- . . ." Buffy cried out.

"Get out! Get out now!" Willow yelled, rage clearly on her face.

"We had a big fight, Will," Buffy pleaded desperately, "he hates me now, w-we're not together. You can still have him."

"GET OUT, YOU TRAITOROUS BITCH!!" Willow screeched, putting her left hand on Buffy's face and pushing her back, making the Slayer fall back on her side. "Get out! We're not friends anymore! GET OOOOUUUTT!!"

Buffy stumbled back to her feet, back to her knees again as she went through the door. Then back up again, sobbing and crying, stumbling down the stairs as she felt as if her life just crumble down around her.

Willow looked at the empty doorway, and then felt the maelstrom of depression grip her and pull her now. Tears sprang in her eyes. She sobbed first, and then cried hard, falling on her pillow, crying onward. Xander and Buffy. Buffy and Xander.

-----

Absentmindedly Buffy picked up her bag, and then ran away from Willow's home crying. Half way to nowhere she slowed down, stopped and then bent forward, leaning her hands on her knees. She cried more. Xander hated her. Willow hated her. She had no one anymore, all because of her own stupid fault, because she couldn't contain her baser emotions. The two best friends she had ever had she lost. She choked out sobs, crying loudly, having difficulty breathing, gasping for air amidst sobs. She sank down to her knees, and bent further until her forehead hit the pavement. How could she have let his happen? She didn't want to go home like this; there was no way she could deal with her mother right now. Giles was equally out of the question. Willow or Xander, that's who she would have gone to . . .

-----

Angel opened the door to his apartment. His eyes widened when he saw the sobbing Buffy. "Buffy! What happened?" he asked with concern, feeling his unbeating heart fill with pain and love.

"So, is it true?" Buffy asked him through the tears. "Did he have to drag you at cross point? Would you just have let me die? Did you lie about the CPR?" Angel felt himself fill with guilt in an instant, looking down at the ground ashamed, then nodded. Buffy laughed through her sobs hysterically. "Can I come in?" she asked then.

"Of course, of course," Angel said, gesturing. Buffy walked into his apartment and looked around. She turned back to him.

The tears welled up with greater power, and she sobbed, "Willow didn't forgive me."

"Didn't forgive you for wh- . . ." Angel started taking a step forward, and only then did he let what he'd been smelling penetrate his brain. He felt his heart break yet again, as he stated, "You slept with Xander."

Buffy nodded, sobbing with ever upward heave of her head. "He was so hot, so sexy, we were training, he smelled so goo- . . . so good. I couldn't resist."

Angel stepped forward and wrapped her in a hug. She cried harder, burying herself in his embrace. "You in love with him?" he asked with pain in his heart.

Buffy nodded, sobbing, splattering some tears on his clothes, and she said, "Yes, he stuck with me, saved my life, was my friend even after I turned him down for the dance. And lately . . . I love you too. I love you both." Angel's heart broke yet again. It hurt hearing her say that, that she was in love with Xander, a guy he knew was much better for her. Buffy continued, crying and sobbing, "Willow didn't forgive me, she hates me. Xander and I had a huge fight - about you." Buffy cried harder and deeper. "I have no friends anymore, I have no friends anymore."

"Ssh," Angel soothed. "They're still your friends. They'll come around."

Buffy shook her head in denial, and anger gripped Buffy then, hissing, "That manipulative bastard. He broke us two up, just so he could get to me. He's just as much a liar and a manipulator as you, you stupid bastard." She dug back into him.

For a brief moment Angel's heart flared, thinking could let her think that, and drive a wedge between her and Xander, then guilt crushed him again. No, he had let fear of rejection guide him long enough, lied too much already. Time to start being honest. "No, Buffy, he didn't," Angel said painfully. Buffy looked up. "I still remember that determined face when he was here, and the very true words that he spoke, they've been haunting me every day since then, 'So, jealous or not, in love with or not, do you think anyone who cares about Buffy would let a sickening, lying, spineless bastard like you get his claws inside of her, hmm?' That was after he told accused me of my lies, and my . . ." Angel shook his head in pain. "Those weren't the words of a manipulator, Buffy. He might have hoped he'd have a chance after I was out of the picture, but that's not why he did it. It was because I was horrible, and don't deserve you." Buffy had lessened her crying just a bit, tiptoed up, and kissed Angel on the lips. "Buffy, I'm not good for you," Angel told her. "We're bro- . . ."

"Shut up," Buffy told him angrily pushing into him. "I have to choose between a lying cheating bastard, and a lying cheating bastard who both love me very much. He threatened to dust you, even if it was what he thought was for my own good. He deliberately is keeping Ampata away from me, even if I'm not attracted to him. Even if you were lying. He's no better than you."

"Oh, no, he's much better than me," Angel answered her sadly. "If it isn't his morality, it's what I am - I can't be in the sun, I- . . ."

"Just shut up and let me cry," Buffy said, breaking down again thinking of Willow.

_To Be Continued . . ._


	13. part 13

Buffy returned to her house, sneaking into her room via the window. Distraught with her sadness she forgot about Ampata and tripped over the mattress with his sleeping form encased in a sleeping bag.

"Huh? Que?" he muttered out.

"Ssh, just Buffy, go back to sleep," Buffy whispered, cursing in her mind. She couldn't keep a tiny sob from escaping during her speaking. Sobbing girl, guy; Ampata was awake instantly.

"What's wrong?" he asked feeling around for the small lamp on the night stand. A moment later there was light, and he saw Buffy's face. It was obvious she had been crying for a long time.

"Nothing, just go back to sleep, Ampata," Buffy said, her tone desperate, she so didn't want to talk about this. Ampata just straightened his back, and slung his arms around her knees, looking at her expectantly.

Buffy looked at him for a few moments, and then sighed. God, what was it about her that made a strong shoulder to cry on so irresistible? "I slept with Xander," Buffy decided to start with that.

"Who's Xander?" Ampata asked confused.

"Lexa," Buffy answered without really thinking about it.

"What!?" Ampata exclaimed in confusion.

"Shhhh, don't wake my mother," Buffy whispered quickly. Ampata nodded embarrassedly. Buffy was too tired, and too strung up to think of an explanation, so she simply told the truth, "Xander fell into a cursed pond. Now cold water turns him into a girl, and warm water turns him back into a guy."

Ampata looked at her with a strange face. Buffy sighed and simply picked him off his makeshift bed with one hand. "I'm not crazy, okay? Magic and demons and stuff are real, and I'm the chosen girl given the power to fight the baddest of the baddest," Buffy muttered in defeat, and then put the astonished South-American down. The blonde then sat down on her bed dejectedly.

"He's gay?" Ampata asked with a face.

Buffy shook her head sadly, and said, "Trying to keep you away from me, and succeeding apparently."

Ampata looked down, pained. Lexa was amazing. Sexy, beautiful, easy going, funny - and she or he was just playing with him. No matter, it was obvious Buffy was a whole lot worse off than he was he was. "So, he was bad? Rough, didn't care about you, he raped you?" Ampata asked.

"Oh, god no!" Buffy exclaimed quickly, and then shrank down, listening for a moment if her mother woke up. "We jumped each other, no raping of me going on. He was amazing; tender, passionate, powerful. It was nothing but pleasure, I've never felt so good in my entire life. It's what happened afterwards that's the problem." Ampata waited expectantly. Tears sprang from Buffy's eyes remembering the events afterwards, much to Buffy's surprise - she didn't think she had any tears left. "I told him I didn't know who to choose, him, or my ex-boyfriend Angel. He broke up with me, but I'm still in love with him. I'm in love with them both."

"Owy," Ampata said.

Buffy nodded, and added, "Suffice it to say, he didn't take it too well, he tried though. He told me about Angel, he's a vampire you see, cursed with his soul, the only good one around. Real vampires are nothing like the brooding, nice, sweet Anne Rice stuff, they're simply brutal killing machines, demons inhabiting former people's bodies. So if you meet one: run. He's 240 years old, and I'm sixteen. Xander told me when I was dying Angel actually lied about not knowing CPR because he was trying to look good to me, Xander had to drag him along forcing him to help him look for me before that. Told me he'd threatened to kill Angel if Angel didn't stop the romance, so Angel broke up with me."

"Wow," Ampata muttered.

Buffy took a deep breath, and let out a soft wail, and said, "That isn't the real problem. My best friend, Willow, she had crush on Xander for the longest time, I should never have . . . I'm evil, I can't blame her. I went to her and confessed, begged for forgiveness and she threw me out. I told Xander he was no better than Angel, that he did everything out of jealousy, I doubt he wants to see me anytime soon. I lost both my friends, I have nobody anymore."

"You have me," Ampata said filled with support, putting her sobbing on hold a bit.

Buffy smiled wryly for a moment, and told him, "I hardly know you, and you'll be gone in a short while."

"It's still a while," Ampata told her with a smile.

Buffy smiled for a moment, then looked away. "I went to Angel after that," she said sadly. "I didn't want to face my mom, he confirmed it, he confessed. Everything Xander accused him of is true. Explained to me Xander didn't do it out of jealousy, but out of care for me."

"He still manipulated me away from you, although that was unnecessary, honor prevents me from taking advantage of the hostess," Ampata told her sadly.

Buffy nodded, crying softly again, and she whispered, "At least he didn't gamble with my life just to look better . . . I lost my best friend, and I can hopefully choose between two lying manipulated guys for a boyfriend."

Ampata got up and sat down next to her, slinging his arms around her, and he said, "You can choose neither, but if you have to choose, choosing the one who wouldn't gamble with your life on a whim would be best choice, I think."

Buffy nodded and said, "On the other hand, Angel didn't try to make Xander look worse, in fact he stood up for him. I think he learned his lesson."

"Better not take the chance," Ampata said and rubbed the girl as he embraced her tightly.

-----

Buffy and Ampata were walking to school, rain came pouring down. It seemed fitting to Buffy, who didn't bother trying to keep from getting wet. Once they entered the school a small little woman it seemed stepped in front of them, and she croaked out, "You look beautiful, my dear. Mind if I take some pictures?" The woman presented a photo camera. Buffy was too depressed really, although the compliment felt good. If it wasn't for Ampata's urging she'd have said 'no'. After making a few poses and the woman clicking away, the two moved on.

They reached their objective. "Willow?" Buffy tried. She felt blessed to have Ampata be here right now. The timing for the student exchange program couldn't have been better. "I'm- . . ."

"Get lost, slut," Willow bit at her angrily as she slammed her locker closed. "I don't want to have anything to do with you."

"Willow," Ampata tried for Buffy.

"Shut up," Willow said, pointing at him angrily. "Friends of the bitch are no friends of mine." Willow then walked off, leaving a disappointed Ampata, and a distraught Buffy. Buffy looked at Ampata with pained eyes.

Buffy forced herself not to cry and she and Ampata walked onward. A few moments later Tatewaki rounded a corner, holding a bouquet of a dozen red roses. "My beautiful- . . ." he started. Buffy let out her frustration by smashing her fist into his face, making him twist backward and sideways until he crashed face first into the lockers.

"Ouch," Ampata said, and looked as Buffy as they simply walked onward past the Japanese guy. "Remind me not to piss you off."

Tatewaki groaned, slid to the floor and muttered, "Usually they wait till after I grab them . . ."

-----

Xander hadn't bothered with putting on makeup and skirts and the like; he was just too depressed. The rain had turned him into Lexa though, and now he stalked through the corridors of school. "Lexa!" Willow called and joined her. "Buffy told me what you and her did, that skank." Lexa regarded her, walking onward. Willow was walking backward, facing her, and continued, "Her and me are done, she betrayed me. The little bitch can't keep her legs closed together. She said you and her had a big fight."

"Apparently she prefers corpses," Lexa told her with a pained grimace.

"Yeah, that's Buffy, necrophiliac slut. I'm here for you, always. Best friends, eh? We could go out together and get our minds off of her," Willow suggested with a bitter smile.

"Tseh, like you're any better," Lexa told her angrily, making Willow stop in her tracks, shocked. Lexa just walked onward.

Willow turned around and caught up. "What do you mean?" Willow asked with dread.

Lexa stopped and turned right to face her, looking menacingly at Willow, and she explained, "You knew how I felt about Buffy, you knew I was in love with her and still you told her to stay away from me for you, while I've never seen you as anything else but a friend. You betrayed _/me/_ by keeping Buffy away from me, Willow. I had to do all kinds of twisting and turning just to get her in the same room alone with me, because of what you demanded of Buffy." Lexa stepped forward with an angry face, making Willow back up in fear and defeat until she banged against the wall. Lexa hissed at her, "Your betrayal wouldn't change any of my feelings for you, keeping all three of us miserable, Buffy's betrayal at least made me and her happy - if she didn't think corpses are sexy . . . so get out of my face, Willow, I can't deal with either of you right now." Lexa then abruptly turned and walked away. Willow didn't move, still looking up where Lexa had been moments earlier. Willow got angry then, and walked away. After a few steps guilt attacked her, and she shuddered with sadness, fighting off her tears.

-----

Lexa stalked to his class with mounting anger. Suddenly someone appeared from behind a corner, and a moment later warm water was splashed in Lexa's face. "Aargh! What was that for!?" Xander called out in anger, stepping forward and grabbing Ampata by his collar.

"Concha mi madre! It's true," Ampata swore looking into Xander's angry eyes. The brunet calmed down a bit and let Ampata go, but was still pissed. "You are some piece of work, you know that? Pretending you're in love with me to remove the possibility of me getting feelings for Buffy and vice versa, even _/if/_ I'm only here for two weeks. And you're accusing her ex."

"I didn't manipulate _/her/_, I did not lie to _/her/_, I'm not a 240-year-old corpse, she did tell you that didn't she?" Xander said angrily.

"Yep," Ampata nodded.

Xander continued, "I'm of her age, I'm alive, and I didn't gamble with her life just to look better, and I never will."

"True, she loves you very much, you know that?" Ampata told him.

"Apparently not enough," Xander said sadly and turned away, starting to walk.

Ampata joined him, and said, "She spent quite some time crying last night, I heard her wish multiple times her love for Angel would just go away." Xander stopped, and turned to him. "In her brain she knows the vampire and her can't work, it's her heart that's the problem," Ampata said and watched Xander look at him. "She's smarter than you think."

Xander growled defeated to no one in particular, and started walking again. "So, we go to that costume party tonight, you could come as Lexa, that way you and Buffy don't have to do the whole star-crossed lovers thing."

"Fine, fine," Xander said, and then turned away from Ampata, who smiled sadly.

-----

Xander sat dejectedly at a lunch table, away from Willow and Buffy who sat at different tables. He, as well as Willow and Buffy, were in such bad moods that no one would sit with them. Well, Ampata sat with Buffy and . . . "Nihau!" Lotion greeted and placed herself across from Xander. Xander looked up lazily, and took in the short-skirted Amazon as she put her plate down and sat down. Once Lotion sat down she looked around and wondered, "Witch and pig-nosed girl not with us today?"

"Nope," Xander said and grabbed a sandwich he had brought with him and disinterestedly took a bite.

"What happened?" she asked confused.

Xander grimaced, hesitated, and then answered, "Pig-nosed girl slept with me, but she still loves the vampire and can't choose. Witch feels pig-nosed girl betrayed her."

Lotion looked completely confused, and said, "Vampires evil, vampires dust. I'm confused."

Xander looked up at her finishing another bite of his sandwich and explained, "Gypsies cursed vampire. They gave him his soul, he's the only good vampire around."

Lotion looked at him, thinking, and then she asked, "What mean 'slept with'?"

Xander looked at her, for a moment he thought about lying, but then said, "I had sex with her."

"No!" Lotion exclaimed shaking her head. Xander nodded, and then tears sprang in her eyes. "You really?" Xander nodded again, and watched thick lines of tears run down the girl's cheeks, and suddenly felt bad. "You marry blonde?" Lotion almost sobbed out.

Xander shook his head, saying, "She can't choose, remember?" Lotion let out a bigger sob, stabbing Xander in the heart. The stupid Amazon had grown on him. Although he had yet to start considering her as an actually romantic possibility, he had started to see the girl as a friend. He quickly got up, walked around the table, and sat down next to her, pushing her aside a little so he could fit. He slung an arm around her and said soothingly, "Hey, it isn't the end of the world. I told you this could happen, didn't I?"

Lotion nodded, shaking from a sob, and said, "But I hoped . . ."

"Our lives are far from over, you never know. And even if I'm not the one to be yours, there are other guys out there. I promise I'll train whoever you're interested in so he can defeat you in combat. That way you won't lose your honor and all that," Xander said, heartbroken at the heartbroken girl.

Lotion stifled her crying, and wiping away some tears, she asked, "You mean that?"

Xander nodded, "Yeah, I do."

"You do love me then?" she asked him painfully.

Xander looked over to Willow, who glared at them, and then at Buffy, who was doing the same, and he said, "As a friend, yeah, I probably reached that state."

Lotion smiled at him, broadly, and whispered to him, "There's hope yet." Xander couldn't help but smile back.

-----

Much later that day, after school, Xander stalked across the grass belonging to the school. It was time to go home, and put on his costume for that night. "AHA!! FINALLY!!" a voice called out angrily. Xander slowed down his walking and then saw Pike walk straight for him. Xander looked around himself and then confusedly indicated himself. "Xander Harris, you pig, how do you dare chase other girls when you have a fiancee!?"

Xander looked at him with an annoyed look, and said, "I don't have a fiancee."

"WHAT?!" Pike yelled and threw a punch that Xander casually avoided. "You dare deny you asked the angel to marry you!?" Pike kept throwing punches and kicks while he yelled at Xander.

"What angel?" Xander asked circling around this lunatic that was unsuccessfully attacking him.

"Stand still, you bastard!" Pike yelled, throwing several more punches. "How can you inflict such pain upon the beautiful Lotion!?"

Xander stopped moving, eyebrows raised in surprise. What was this guy doing with Lotion? He moved once again just in time before Pike could hit him, and he said, "Will you quit this already!? Lotion isn't my fiancee! I didn't ask her to marry me."

"Now you're calling her a liar!" Pike screamed enraged doubling his efforts.

That was it, Xander was utterly pissed off about this. He parried the next blow, and then kicked out. With an 'oof' that removed all Pike's air, the vagrant was launched from his position until he crashed against a tree and sank down. "Did you see a ring?" Xander asked angrily, coming over. Pike sat dazed. "Well!?"

Pike looked at him angrily suddenly, "A cheapskate too!"

Xander smashed his hand in his forehead in frustration and then grabbed Pike by his collar and lifted him off the ground, pushing hi against the tree. Xander snarled out, "Ancient Amazon tradition: man defeat Amazon in combat, Amazon marry man. I did not know that when I defeated her in combat. Now they 'say' I'm her fiance, but in fact I am not. You get it yet!?" Pike looked at the angry Xander dumbfounded. Xander moved even closer, his angry face almost touching Pike's dumbfounded one, saying, "If you like her so much, just defeat her in combat, and _/you/_ get to marry her." Xander finished his tirade, and dropped Pike to the ground. Xander stalked off, cursing under his breath.

Pike's eyes were wide, stood up, and yelled, "Lotion! My beauty, I'm coming for you!" Xander halted for a moment, looked backward, and saw Pike run for his bike.

"Oh, brother, he's so going to get his ass kicked," Xander muttered, shaking his head.

-----

Lotion was just finishing her Playboy bunny outfit. Fishnet pantyhose, white high heels, purple high cut body, that slipped in her ass crack in the back, right where a fake bunny tail hid it from view. A pair of bunny ears, a collar and bow tie, and finally wrist fittings of a blouse finished the outfit. Her makeup was thick, red lips, colored eyes, all to accentuate her femininity. Her brown hair now had playboy bunny heads to tie them together instead of her normal ribbons.

"You look amazing, Lotion," Deo sad with a large smile. "No man will be able to resist you."

"I hope so," Lotion answered with a big smile.

"LOTION!" a voice screamed from in front of the house. Lotion and Deo looked at each other, as the voice cried, "I have come for your hand in marriage! I challenge you to a duel!" The two amazons walked over to the window of this first floor room, and opened it, looking at Pike standing below, looking up at them. "Give me this honor, beautiful Lotion," he added.

Lotion blinked in confusion a few times, and looked at her mother, who was obviously very annoyed. "Defeat this fool quickly, Lotion, so you can go dazzle your future husband," Deo told her daughter.

"I will," Lotion said with a nod and simply jumped out the window, landing across from a startled Pike on the toes of her high-heeled shoes.

Pike looked with wide eyes at Lotion's appearance, blubbering about a bit. Then he caught himself and said, "As a rule I don't hit women, but if it's the only way to get you to marry me, I'll make this one exception. I will make this as fast and as painless as possible."

"Okay, come," Lotion said, beckoning him.

Pike nodded and ran at her with a roar. Lotion blocked his right punch and smashed her fist in his stomach - several times over - each time tears of pain sprang from Pike's eyes. Lotion let go, and with a right backhand sent him flying off to the right, where he crashed into a fence. "Ouch, oi, ow," Pike muttered slowly as he lay broken on floor.

"Now you stop being silly? Only one man in existence that can beat me," Lotion got a dreamy look, and then added, "Have no interest in you?"

Lotion waited a moment, and then Pike rose defeated, hurting all over, still dazed, but he said, "No. You are amazing. You are beautiful. And you are strong and skilled. So I promise you this, Lotion, I will take my bike, and find a teacher. Once I'm strong enough to beat you in combat, I will be back! And then you will marry me!" Pike than indeed walked over to his bike, while Lotion looked at him in annoyance and surprise. The bike started, and he drove off, apparently determined to keep his promise.

-----

Willow sat dejectedly in her room, looking at the two outfits. One a cute Eskimo, the other a much more sexy outfit. She had all but thrown the Eskimo outfit out earlier, but now . . . she didn't feel sexy, she just felt miserable. Decision made, she grabbed the Eskimo outfit, and started putting it on.

-----

Lexa rang the bell, wearing a cowboy outfit. Bright red lips. The leather pants were tight, and the shirt really meant for her male self wrapped tightly around her breasts showing them off. The door opened revealing Ampata, smiling and wearing a vampire costume. "Ah, cowgirl, let me sack your bload."

"That's so not funny in this town, Ampata," Lexa commented, and Ampata chuckled.

"I think it is," he said, and gestured up the stairs. "Let's not forget about Buffy."

Buffy came out nervously when she heard her name. She was dressed up like Little Red Riding Hood, a mixture of sexiness and innocence. She came down the stairs, and looked at the female version of the guy she had lost her virginity to. "A-are we okay?" Buffy asked Lexa.

Lexa looked at her for a few moments, and then said coolly, "We will be, probably." Buffy got an expression that was both relief and disappointed pain.

"Okay, I've got the camera," Buffy's mother announced coming to join the three. "You all look fantastic," Joyce said, taking in the three, noticing Xander's female form. When the whole vampires-are-real-and-Buffy's-a-super-hero explanation had been given, Xander's double gender nature had come up as well. The three of them joined together and Joyce made a few pictures of the three dressed-up teens. Once the pictures were taken they said goodbye to Buffy's mom and they went outside.

-----

Upon entering the Bronze Giles' eyes widened when they fell on Jenny in a sexy bee costume. "Rupert, English librarian, truly an inspired costume," Jenny said with a big smile.

"I- uh- I didn't think chaperones should come in-in costume as well," Giles stammered out embarrassedly.

Jenny smiled, planted a chaste kiss on his lips, and then hooked her arms behind his and led him deeper into the lion's den. "No problem, Rupert, just don't forget to have fun," she said with a smile.

A few minutes later Ampata, and two depressed demon hunters entered the place. A short moment later he was dancing with Lexa on the dance floor. When the next song started he was dancing with Buffy, determined to get his temporary friends to enjoy themselves.

Willow - all cutesy as an Eskimo, spear in one hand, and a big, fake fur coat with broad hat covering her head - entered the Bronze then, and took a sad look around. She found Ampata dancing with Buffy, and saw Lexa sitting at a table. She walked away from her, and placed herself against a pillar, thinking, feeling guilty.

On the stage, the guitarist of the band noticed Willow. He leant over to another musician and asked, "Who's that?"

"Oh, Monica Harrow," the guy answered.

"No, the one in the Eskimo costume," the guitarist added.

"Don't know," was the answer.

Cordelia, with Tatewaki behind her entered the Bronze, and she looked around. She quickly found Lexa and grinned. She told Tatewaki to go mingle on his own, and she walked over to Lexa. "Hello, Lexa," Cordelia greeted and she looked up, eyes widening. Cordelia was dressed like a nurse, and the outfit was so skimpy, the skirt so short, Lexa actually wondered if the costume had been bought in a lingerie shop instead of a costume shop. "Wanna dance?" Cordy asked suggestively.

"Well . . . okay," Lexa said reluctantly, and let herself be taken onto the dance floor. After a while of dancing and some conversation, Lexa said, "You look stunning, Cordy."

"Thank you," Cordelia returned.

Tatewaki had placed himself on the side of the dance floor, watching Buffy dancing with Ampata with large sparkling eyes, then watched the two get off the dance floor, when the band took a break.

Willow had maneuvered to the punch table and filled a glass for herself. Guilt over what she had done, fueled by Xander's words, flooded her being. She wasn't really upset about Xander, they were best friends for so long, their friendship could take quite a beating and keep going. It was Buffy that was nagging her. Ever since she had ostracized her from her life, exactly twenty-four hours ago, she felt miserable. Buffy . . . was Buffy, her first female friend. Although at the moment she felt like wringing her neck, it also hurt severely that she was no longer her friend. She couldn't take it any longer, put the punch down, turned around and walked to where Buffy and Ampata were sitting at a table.

"Hello . . ." the guitarist with partially bleached hair in prickles said, but Willow had just left. He smiled wryly at missing her, and muttered, "Who's that girl?"

Willow and Tatewaki both headed toward Buffy's table, both only a few meters away from it. Willow was much more determined though, so she just plowed through Tatewaki, pulling his leg from under him without even noticing she did. A moment later the Japanese guy lay groaning on the floor. Willow reached the table, listening in on the pleasant conversation between Ampata and Buffy, but not caring. "Buffy," she said, plaintive, with a hint of anger.

Buffy looked up, and said in reflex, her eyes watering, "Willow, I-I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done it, can you forgive me?"

Willow sat down, and told Buffy, "I'm sorry." Buffy blinked in confusion. "I could beat you up right now, do you know that? That's how much I resent you, but . . ." Willow took a deep breath, and added, "I knew how Xander felt about you, I should never have asked you to leave him alone. I betrayed him and you, betrayed my best friend's wants and desires, and did the same with your potential happiness with him. I'm sorry, I hope you can forgive me, I'll forgive you, but I'm going to be angry with you for quite some time, I can't just turn that off."

Buffy was crying with happiness, Ampata smiling a huge smile. Buffy nodded then, "Nothing to forgive," Buffy sobbed out, and then grabbed Willow and pulled her into a tight hug. Willow was surprised at first, part of her wanting to bash Buffy's head in, then something else became apparent.

"Agh, uck, Slayer strength!" Willow called out, as she felt her body getting unhealthily compressed.

"Sorry," Buffy muttered loosening up some, but not stopping the hug.

"Big baby," Willow said, and then hugged back fiercely, silently thanking Xander for giving her the chewing-out and making her see her own mistakes so she could get herself to this point. She really had no idea what she would do if Buffy would really no longer be her friend.

Cordelia and Lexa arrived at the table then, and saw the hug going on. Cordelia was confused, Lexa was somewhat glad the two had made up, but still pissed about the whole situation and most notably what led to it; Buffy's infatuation with a demon-animated corpse.

"Uh, uh, oh," Ampata let out, huge eyes, and the crowd in the bronze grew a lot less loud. Cordelia and Lexa saw Ampata's reaction and they turned around. Buffy and Willow turned around themselves soon after. Cordelia's eyes narrowed with hatred, the outfit she was wearing was positively conservative compared to that. Lexa's eyes widened in appreciation. Buffy's eyes widened in surprise, and Willow's eyes widened with very different feelings.

Playboy bunny Lotion came walking over to the table, hips swaying suggestively. -Hubba, hubba . . . oh, no!- Willow thought, with lust and dread. -No! No! I can't be thinking about the bitch like that. Avert eyes, now!- Willow forced her head around with difficulty.

Both Ampata and Lexa kept their eyes glued to the vision of absolute sexiness. When Lotion reached the table, she was annoyed that Xander was in his female form. At least his eyes were suitably glued to her body. Hmm, a little jealousy might help. "Ampata, would you like to dance?" Lotion asked sweetly.

Ampata, eyes huge as saucers, nodded his head vigorously and then rapidly got up. His arm wrapped around the Playboy bunny with utter relish as he took her on the dance floor. Cordelia folded her arms across her chest, and said, "What kind of a skank dresses up like a Playboy bunny?"

"Oddly enough, right there with you, Cordelia, right Willow?" Buffy said, but no answer came. "Willow?" Buffy asked, looking at Willow whose eyes were obviously glued to the Amazon.

"Huh?" Willow said, tearing her gaze away.

"Oh, no, Xander fine, but you?" Buffy said with disappointment.

"What's with me?" Lexa asked, her eyes equally glued to the dance floor. Buffy shook her head.


	14. part 14

"Bye!" Buffy waved.

"Goodbye, Ampata!" Willow yelled, waving after the bus driving off.

"Bye, bye," Xander called as well, waving.

Once the bus was out of sight, the three turned around and slowly walked back. "I'm going to miss him," Willow declared with a wistful smile.

"So am I, I'm going to write," Buffy added for good measure.

"I'm just debating whether I should write him as me or as Lexa . . . I think I'll do both," Xander said with an odd face. Buffy and Willow slammed their fists gently on his chest. "Ow, hey! You know, he deserves a little thrill for patching us back together. Ow, ah, careful, you two are a lot stronger these days."

"Big baby," Buffy commented with a smile.

"He's got a point though, Buffy," Willow started with a big smile. "We're not out of the romantic maze yet, but mostly thanks to Ampata we remember we're friends first, lovers later."

Buffy nodded and wondered, "Perhaps I should send him a nude picture of me. Ow, hey!"

"Hey, if you can hit me for that," Xander said with a grin, and Buffy's face darkened.

"Xander Harris," she growled, and Xander ran. Buffy chased after him screaming, "Get back here!" Willow grinned widely and then ran after them herself. It didn't take long before they reached a small piece of grass and all three rolled over it, laughing.

-----

"Tatewaki, I'll drive you back- . . ." Cordelia started, opening Tatewaki's door, and froze shocked, having wanted to finish with, 'to the airport.' Shocked she looked at Tatewaki lying on his bed, looking up and the only three things not yet packed, judging from the cleanliness in the room. There on the slanted ceiling hung three posters of three different girls, all in different sexy positions. First there was a blue-haired girl - and who the hell dies her hair blue Cordelia thought, although it looked quite good on her, it wasn't bright blue more natural - a buxom redhead, and finally Buffy Summers; drenched from the rain, her shirt clinging wetly to her breasts, and giving a sexy hand kiss, and wink. "WHAT THE HELL!?" Cordelia screamed out suddenly.

Tatewaki looked at her, sighed, and then said, "Akane Tendo, the pig-tailed girl, and Buffy Summers, the three great loves of my life . . ." Then he wailed out in addition, ". . . and I can't choose! What cruel fate I must endure!" There was a powerful slap and Tatewaki's head flew to the right, going, "Oof!"

"Put a sock in it! There are much greater fates to endure; especially with these damn pinups to look at! Look at my hair today! It just won't stay right!" Cordelia told the Japanese guy angrily. "Now get your porn of the ceiling, or I'll tear them off," Cordelia threatened.

"No, no! I will get them already, don't tear them!" Tatewaki exclaimed and quickly but carefully went to work.

Cordelia mashed her teeth together, then turned around and walked out the room, muttering to herself, "What is it with Buffy!? Buffy here. Buffy there. What does she have that I don't have? Is it the hair? Should I bleach mine too?"

-----

Buffy bent back, making the vampire miss. She was in a cemetery, and looked astonished at how easy she avoided the punch. Well, not exactly easy, but definitely easier than before Xander started training her. The four vamps had surprised her. She was wearing a leather jacket, a short skirt, a few mid-heeled boots, and a spaghetti-strapped top that was now obscured by the jacket. Her hair was done so it looked casual and classy all at once. She was planning to arrive fashionably late at her date, now these stupid vamps had just made her plane . . . well, _/too/_ late.

A quick uppercut sent the vampire away from her. She twisted slightly, blocking a downward punch and immediately turning it into a throw. Buffy pulled the vampire over her shoulder, staked him, and jumped to her left. She twisted rapidly around her axis, hit a vampire with a right flying roundhouse kick, the left followed, and turning around she smashed the vampire across the cheek with her right again. She landed, and quickly dispatched the unliving creature with a stake through the heart. She twisted around rapidly, slapping a lunging vampire's arm aside, immediately slammed her stake in the freed heart, and it turned to dust. She yelped as the first vamp kicked her hand, making her drop her stake. She backed away, made a back flip, and the vampire jumped at her in a growl. She suddenly jumped forward and landed a five-combo hit on his torso and face, then finished it up with a devastating uppercut making him fly backward. Buffy bent down, and with a quick yank freed a headstone from one A. Hanor's grave. She shrugged at the name, ran and jumped to the downed, groaning vampire. With a vicious downward thrust - she even yelled with the effort - she smashed the vamp's face in. His brains spilled out, and then he puffed into dust.

Buffy quickly made a few cartwheels, and grabbed her stake. She went into a ready stance. She listened and peered, and when no new vamps came at her she took that as to mean she'd gotten them all. She checked her nails quickly: they weren't broken - as usual. Then she checked her outfit; that too seemed without dirt and dust. She put her stake away then and pulled out a mirror and checked her makeup. "Damn," she said, putting it away, her mind going over the quite quick fight. Four of them. "The training is definitely paying off," she muttered in shock, realizing that before them she would have had quite a bit of difficulty with four vamps, now she had taken them down rather smoothly; the individual fights were much faster, and she had kept the vamps on greater distance. She put her mirror away and said with a smile, "All right, ready for my date, I'm _/so/_ late!" She then ran off.

From the bushes a vampire with a camcorder arrived, muttering, "Shit."

-----

Xander sat waiting at a table in the bronze. A date with Buffy. An _/actual/_ date with Buffy. And he was looking forward to it too. A chance to show her he was funny, and had things together, and he was more then a good body and a good fuck; a chance to show her he should be with him, not with a corpse.

Of course she was late. That _/so/_ wasn't good. After a few moments of sitting alone, Cordelia arrived. "Hi, Xan, mind if I join you?" Cordelia asked him.

Xander took her in for a moment, and then nodded, saying, "But I'm expecting, Buffy. We're having a date tonight, and when she gets here, you leave, got that?"

"Not a problem," Cordelia said cheerily. "You're never going to believe what I found in Tatewaki's room just before I shipped him off." Xander looked at her expectantly, and she finished, "The pervert actually has almost life size posters of the girls he claims to be in love with. All pinups too. Some blue-haired chick, a pig-tailed girl, and Buffy. You should have seen his reaction when I threatened to tear them off." Cordelia made an imitation, and Xander smiled and chuckled at it, not really caring about Tatewaki's affections for his girl, the pervert didn't stand a chance anyway after having the audacity of burying his head in her chest.

-Pig-tailed girl?- suddenly flashed through his mind, looking dumbfounded, a flash of Ranma going through his head. "Nah, can't be," he said.

Cordelia protested, "It's true, I swear. Life size."

Xander looked at her, about ready to protest again, and he said with a smile, "Not that, just something that entered my mind that's all. Did that perverted henchman of him make the picture of Buffy?"

"She seemed to be posing," Cordelia thought, then shrugged at the question. "Anyway, after watching him bully him around, including kicking and calling him things . . ." Cordelia shuddered for a moment, and continued, "I actually took a good long look at my life and the treatment of the help. I'm nowhere near as bad as he was, but worse than I'd like to be."

"What?" Xander asked with a huge smile, "Is Cordelia Chase admitting she's a bitch and she doesn't want to be?"

"Hey! I'm always going to be a bitch! I just like to be a bit less to people who didn't do anything - you know, wield my bitchiness like a scalpel instead of a tank," she said in protest, much to Xander's enjoyment.

Buffy came into the Bronze and looked around, looking for Xander. She actually looked forward to this, it would be hellishly awkward undoubtedly, but both Ampata, Angel, and Xander's pleas had made her decide she wanted to experience Xander on a date. She walked further into the Bronze and looked around, finally spotting Xander . . . talking and smiling with Cordelia Chase. She paled, and felt horrible. Xander was here having a good time with the first bitch that came along, and why? Slayer business! That's right, four vampires thought she was a tasty morsel. She slumped, staggered back once, and decided she didn't want to break up Xander's good time. She turned around and slowly walked toward the exit.

Xander looked passed Cordelia to see if possibly Buffy was arriving anytime soon. The Sunnydale High Queen turned out to be quite a fun, and a lot deeper individual than he had given her credit for. He just saw who he knew was Buffy turn around and start to walk away. "Buffy! I'm here!" he called out, thinking she missed him behind Cordelia or something. Cordelia looked around, and he jumped off his stool and ran through the crowd. "Buffy!" he called after her.

Buffy reached the exit when Xander caught up with her. "Hey, I'm here, Buff," he said and took in the exit. "Why are you leaving?"

"Because you're just have a fantastic great time with her," Buffy said angrily pointing at the cheerleader that was coming just behind him.

"What? Her? What do you- . . .?" Xander started, then grasped it, and turned back to Buffy saying, "She asked to join me while I was waiting for you. We were just talking, I told her to get lost once you were here. Didn't I tell you that?"

"He did tell me that, Buffy. Here's your date," Cordelia bit at the Slayer.

Buffy looked at Cordelia and told her, "Yeah, _/you/_ were just talking."

"Hey! I'm standing right here," Xander demanded Buffy's attention. "Are you saying I am not even allowed to talk to another girl?"

"No! It's just- . . . ah forget it, this date is ruined anyway," Buffy said and quickly sprinted out the bronze, feeling bad.

Cordelia held Xander back, and said, "Just let her be, you can't do anything anyway." Xander slumped, Cordelia smiled.

-----

"Bloody hell, amazing," Spike muttered watching a video of Lotion and Xander in action against a whole horde of vampires. Outside contracting had been a must with these around. "The way they fight, and their strength, it's a good thing that guy with the umbrella returned to Japan, because he'd beat both of them with his bloody hands tied behind his back." The lair, an abandoned factory, was hung all over with tvs for Spike to watch the fights on. "Once I figure out their moves though . . . and perhaps I should find something to enhance myself. Never met a tosser like this, look at that. Just one of them can take on a whole bloody army of Slayers."

"Spike?" the vampire with the camcorder said, arriving.

"What is it, wanker," Spike bit at him.

"The Slayer in action, sir," the vampire said.

"All right, put it in," Spike said and a moment later he watched Buffy in action. "Fuck me, makes you start to bloody swear in American; she's catching up to them. Not there yet by quite a bit, but she's gotten better. Whoa, see that? Rewind!" Spike pointed at the screen and a moment later the tape was rewound a bit. "Did you see how she used that head stone to dust him? She's bloody resourceful too."

"Spoike," a dreamy female voice said, and Drusilla in a long blue-white robe came gliding into the room.

"Not now, pet, can't you see I'm studying how to kill these bloody bastards," Spike said with quite some affection in his voice.

"Miss Edith told me the stars are whispering, I listened closely," Drusilla singsonged.

"Did you have a vision, pet?" Spike asked, instantly walking over with a smile.

Drusilla nodded, purring, and said, "Tomorrow night you get your chance, tomorrow night they'll be weak."

"Tomorrow- . . . but tomorrow night is Halloween, nothing ever happens on Halloween," Spike wondered.

Drusilla nodded and said, "Someone's come to change that."

-----

The next day Willow and Buffy were sitting on the counter in the girls' bathroom. ". . . So once again being the Slayer screwed with my life," Buffy concluded to a dumbfounded Willow.

Willow looked at Buffy, and the Slayer fidgeted at the disbelieving face. "Let me get this straight, Buffy," Willow questioned with a pissed tone. Before the whole blow up between the two Willow would never have spoken to her best at such a tone, but now she could, and in fact, felt it was necessary. "You arrive in the Bronze, and you find that viper bitch making a move on Xander, and your brilliant strategy was to leave, leaving the two alone, for an entire night, so the viper bitch can make her moves, her feminine wiles on Xander all evening long?"

Buffy blinked looking at Willow, then blinked again, and finally slumped saying sheepishly, "I guess that wasn't the smartest thing to do."

"You guess!?" Willow requested in disbelieve. Buffy fidgeted in embarrassment.

Just then the door opened and Cordelia walked in, going straight for the mirror to touch up her makeup, and she said, "Thanks for leaving me with Xander, Buffy, we had a great time. I wonder how long it takes for me to make him mine, how long I have him in my bed."

"I already had him in my bed," Buffy bit at Cordelia with an evil grin.

Cordelia turned to Buffy for a moment, then smiled and returned to the mirror, at the same time starting, "Dream on, Summers, and even if you had, keeping them is what counts, and you obviously couldn't." Cordelia finished her makeup retouching and turned to face the apprentice witch and the Slayer, and said, "You see, you may be strong, fast, agile, and got super healing, but when it comes to dating, _/I'm/_ the Slayer." Cordelia then left the bathroom.

Willow looked at a sad Buffy, and placed an arm around the Slayer's shoulder. "Come on, let's go to lunch," she told Buffy. Buffy nodded.

-----

Xander was pissed off. Really, really pissed off. He was really in no mood for anything. His date with Buffy fell through last night, and it still pissed him off. He saw Buffy and Willow sitting at a table and he walked over to the soda machine. He dumped a few coins in there, and pushed the soda he wanted to have. Nothing happened. Oh, no! Xander was reaching the boiling point now, pushing another drink, then tried the first again, several times.

"Hey, Harris," a voice called from behind him. Larry, Xander's bully from classes lower, a football jock, emerged from behind Xander and slammed his hand on the machine, promptly a soda can dropped it. "That's how you do it," he said with a grin, grabbing the can, intending to keep it.

"I paid for it, give it to me," Xander said extremely pissed off.

"And what are you going to do about it, loser?" Larry asked with a grin, about to open the can.

Faster than Larry could react, Xander's hands reached out, grabbed the head-taller Larry by the collar and lifted him clear of the floor, growling out, "_/What/_ did you just call me!? WHAT!?"

"Here, take the soda, man," Larry said pitifully afraid. "You can have it, I just . . ." Xander's left hand shot down with a growl, taking the can, and then simply tossing Larry forward with his right hand. Larry landed on his feet, staggered backward, then dropped painfully to his ass, and slid backward. Lots and lots of student laughed at him. "SHUT UP!" he shouted at some, and then quickly got up and ran away.

Xander sat down next to Willow grumbling. "Whoa," Willow said looking back at where Larry went. "What got you so pissed off?"

"Ask her," Xander said indicating Buffy.

"Nihau, I can join?" Lotion commented, and Xander let his hand slam in the table. He so wasn't in the mood for the gungho, always positive Lotion right now. Willow gave a shrug and Lotion sat down before anyone protested. "How did date go?" Lotion asked, and Xander groaned. "Good," she said, making Willow and Buffy stare daggers at the beautiful Amazon.

-----

The four of them walked through the hall, giving Snyder and his 'volunteer' table a wide birth. The man just forced another student to sign up to take some kids trick-or-treating. "So what kind of big Halloween evil do we get to fight tonight, Buff?" Xander asked the blonde Slayer, walking next to her with an angry Willow and an oblivious Lotion behind them.

"Nothing. Giles says on Halloween nothing happens, all the demons take a night off," Buffy answered with a smile.

"Really? What for? Do they think it's gone too commercial or something?" Xander wondered.

Buffy shrugged, and said, "I don't know, I guess even demons take a night off from world ending events and other nefarious plans. Which means we get to spend time together."

"Great," Willow said enthusiastically.

"Yeah, I really feel sorry for the guys who go past Snyder though. I think he has the definition of 'volunteer' twisted or something," Buffy said with a grin, all four giving the table a look.

"Well, we could . . ." Xander started.

"_/Miss/_ Summers," Snyder's voice snapped them all into place as he sneaked up on them from behind. "Just the juvenile delinquent I have been looking for. Come along."

"But . . ." Buffy tried a protest as she was dragged along. Willow, Xander, and Lotion looked at each other for a moment, then followed slinkily to watch what was going to happen.

Snyder spoke, "I volunteered this school to give chaperones to kids who otherwise can't go trick or treating. It's from four to six, after that you can get up to whatever tomato-throwing, or toilet-paper-covering hijinks you were undoubtedly planning." Snyder yanked Buffy in front of him, and looked at her for a moment, and then picked up a volunteer sheet.

"But, but . . . I'm allergic to Halloween!" Buffy blurted out the first thing that came to mind that might get her out of the ordeal, as behind her Xander, Willow and Lotion arrived and silently watched with just subdued smirks as Buffy was reeled in relentlessly.

Snyder gave her a look, and with a quick motion that showed she had no other choice, he presented her a pen. Buffy gave him a puppy-dog-eyed face, but he didn't budge and she reluctantly took the pen. Xander, Willow and Lotion looked with slight grins, until Snyder grabbed three pens and with an expectant look he presented the pens to them. They're spirits faltered, and then they took the pens, resigning themselves to their fate.

-----

"Okay, so you guys found a costume yet?" Xander asked enthusiastically. They just stood in front of a bin just inside a new costume shop, called Ethan's.

"Uh, no, not really, nothing exciting, perhaps I should just go with the time-honored classic of the ghost," Willow muttered a little depressed.

"Don't, Willow," Buffy warned with a grin. "You can't go hiding . . . again."

"Yeah," Xander said with a smile. "We all got you out of your shell, you already lost your opportunity with the costume ball, can't crawl back in your shell now, Will."

"Yeah, well, I haven't seen anything interesting yet," Willow said, fidgeting a little. She had seen a few thinks, but . . .

"And you Buffy?" Xander wondered with a smile.

"No, nothing that really strikes my fancy, you?" Buffy asked him with a smile, still rummaging through costumes.

Xander held up a blue toy gun, and wiggled it. "That's not a costume," Willow accused him.

Xander grinned at her, explaining, "It will be when I mix it with the army fatigues I have at home. Just call me the two-dollar costume king."

"Don't you have a job now?" Buffy wondered with a frown.

"Rent, gas, food, water, two sets of clothes, it's just Halloween," Xander told her with a grin, "and I already spent some on that cowboy costume for Lexa at the ball."

Willow and Buffy smiled at him, and then something caught Buffy's eye. "Ooh! Look at that," Buffy said, pointing at a beautiful, eighteenth-century gown hanging against the back wall. She walked over, and Willow and Xander followed her. "Isn't it gorgeous?" Buffy asked, her eyes shining.

"Nah, I'm not into all the frilly stuff, give me a woman in spandex any day," Xander told them with a smile. This whole thing had actually put him in a good mood.

Buffy looked at Willow, and then the redhead looked up and said, "Shoo, Xander, we need some girl talk."

Xander looked disappointed at first, and then he put a smile back on his face and said, "All right then, I pick you guys up later, okay?"

"Okay," Willow and Buffy said in choir. They waved at a retreating Xander.

"What do you think?" Buffy asked with large eyes when Xander was out of earshot. "Would this make up for my goof last night? Do you think Xander would like this?"

"I don't know, Buffy, if you want to dazzle Xander, he said it himself, spandex is the way I guess," Willow said with a weak smile.

"Spandex is super hero, Willow," Buffy sad sadly. "I'm super hero every day of the week, it ruined last night's date remember?"

"I think you managed that quite well yourself by walking off, you know," Willow told Buffy, who conceded the point with a nod.

The Slayer added though, "But Halloween is about coming as something you're not, Super Hero is something I already am." Willow nodded at that. Buffy continued, "For one night I would just like to be a dazzling, beautiful lady, who couldn't possibly screw up a date, is always poised and laughs at his jokes, and acknowledges his masculinity . . . you know, bat my eyelashes at him when he beats up a bully, instead of just look down depressed."

"I guess," Willow said taking in the gown.

"Do you think I can pull it off? Make a gown look interesting to Xander?" Buffy wondered at Willow.

"You found costume yet?" an annoying voice interrupted. "Pig-nosed girl not think you wear that! You too crude, and too boxy nose to be lady," Lotion added, and Buffy and Willow whirled around in annoyance, their anger growing by the moment.

"Listen you!" Willow bit out.

"Oh, you here too?" Lotion wondered out loud, interrupting the witch. "You should go as 'invisible girl', need no costume at all!"

"Why you!" Willow screeched about ready to attack the Amazon, but a calming hand from Buffy held her back.

"Now watch my costume!" Lotion said holding up a see-through plastic bag, in which was the costume of Wonder Woman. "Fellow Amazon, will blow Xander away. You too should give up now, beanstalk and pig-nosed girl don't stand chance now." Lotion then laughed and left the store, while Willow flailed her arms to get at her, and Buffy restrained her.

"She's not worth it, Will, let it go," Buffy said, more like sniffed out with her own mounting anger.

"I should turn her into a toad!" Willow exclaimed in anger.

"You can do that?" Buffy wondered, but still angry.

"Not yet, and it's totally unethical, but it would feel _/soo/_ good," Willow said, calming down just a tiny bit, she was at least not flailing her arms anymore. Buffy's anger quickly dissipated though, as Buffy turned back around and looked wistfully at the gown.

"That's it!" Willow screeched out. "That's really it! That bitch is going down! There's no way I'm going to let that bitch put her claws into Xander! I rather have you have Xander than her! Hell, I rather have Cordelia have Xander than her! In fact I'd rather share Xander with you than let her have him."

"Huh?" Buffy said, not really having heard.

Willow looked directly at Buffy, face determinedly angry, and as she grabbed the Slayer's arms pulling her along, she said, "Forget about the stupid gown, I've got a better costume for us."

"H-hey, W-will, where are you taking me?" Buffy half-heartedly protested, but letting herself be dragged along.

"Look, Buffy, this requires the big guns," Willow told her friend and finally stopped, placing her friend there, who looked around the new costume section not comprehending. Willow grinned wider, which Buffy could only see partially. The redhead spoke sinisterly, "We'll go as the . . ."

-----

Costume shop Party Town

Across Sunnydale

" . . . one thing . . ." Cordelia said with large eyes.

-----

Back at Ehan's

". . . all guys . . ." Willow continued.

-----

" . . . hope for and . . ."

-----

" . . . fantasize about: . . ."

-----

Cordelia pulled the greenish costume from the rack, and finished telling herself, ". . . a harem girl."

-----

Willow pulled the mostly red, and the mostly blue costumes from the rack, turned around, gave Buffy a determined face as she held up the costumes, and proclaimed, ". . . a harem!"

Lightning flashed, Buffy's eyes widened in shock, her jaw dropped, and thunder rolled at clear skies.

Ethan standing at the cash register looked up, and with a smile whispered, "Janus is already pleased. Chaos will reign."


	15. part 15

". . . a harem!" Willow exclaimed.

Buffy's jaw dropped, and looked with shock at Willow. "Wh-wh-what!?" Buffy exclaimed. She loved dressing up, but this was going really far.

"A harem, you know, multiple wives, one husband, wielding power over the women with a strong iron fist and the wives must obey," Willow elaborated, looking intensely in Buffy's eyes.

"I know what a harem is! But . . . a harem, that's . . ." Buffy started trying out the concept of being Xander's obedient sex slave wife in her mind. That was so . . . that was so, ew. And yet, she was shocked to find out part of her wouldn't mind. She shook her head, so not for her, even as Willow talked.

"The exact opposite of what you are, Buffy. You can't get much more 'not' you, that's what you wanted right? Think about it, obedient, submissive toward Xander and guys in general unless Xander orders otherwise, sweet, always agreeing with Xander, never speaking for yourself, certainly not fighting people and demons. Harem Girl Buffy will be as far removed from Buffy Buffy as you can get," Willow said excitedly, with a simmering anger toward the already left Lotion.

That was true, it did sound like fun for a night, Buffy thought, starting to get into the idea. "A-are you sure about this, Willow?" Buffy wondered. The angry, fiery Willow wasn't the standard Willow, she couldn't chicken out of course, the same went for her, she realized. This was starting to become more exciting, almost forbidden; she could just imagine her mother's and father's reaction to her announcing, 'Mom, dad, I fell in love with an Arab sheik and I will become his sixteenth wife.' Not to mention the feminist outrage in the papers of a nice American girl going in a harem. A secret thrill started filling Buffy; this was so taboo, and so not done, and so not her, that it became more and more thrilling to be for a night.

"What?" Willow asked, actually getting a bit more angry and determined. "You think I don't mean I rather share Xander with you than let Lotion have her?" Buffy blinked at Willow's bluntness. "I'll prove it to you!" Willow told her, taking a sudden step forward and dipped forward a bit. Before Buffy had time to get out of her shock, her best friend's lips pressed against hers in a deep kiss. Buffy's eyes widened to their full extent, shocked at the soft lips against hers, the lovely kiss, and tongue slipping her mouth just a bit and suggestively licking her upper lip. Then Willow pulled back as quickly as she came, the whole kiss have lasted less than two seconds. Buffy blinked with the shock, her right up moved up of its own accord, touching the lips to try and figure out if the kiss had really happened. "Wh- . . . huh? Ho- . . . .wuh?" Buffy managed to mutter out, too shocked at the realization she was just kissed by a girl, by her best friend.

"I'll take that as a yes," Willow grinned, and moved one outfit to the other hand. She then grabbed the still stunned Buffy by the arm, and pulled her along to the register. Xander wouldn't know what hit him, Willow thought, and then came across a pot of green paint. "Even better," Willow said and took a pot. She showed it to Buffy.

"Huh?" Buffy muttered still dazed, and unsure if this was really the way to go, although it appealed to her.

"Orion slave girls," Willow said with an enthusiastic nod. "You remember in the letter? From Star Trek? They are green-skinned. All sexually ferocious and irresistible to human males and such."

Buffy blinked, and then shook her head. She gave the guy behind the cash register a look, bent over and whispered, "Not for me, too much like ferocious, unstoppable Slayer. Want to be something else remember?"

"Okay, only I will wear it then! I'm not ferocious at all," Willow said with a grin. Now Xander _/really/_ wouldn't know what hit him.

-----

Buffy looked in the mirror, and asked, "Are we really going through with this?" She was in the red harem girl outfit. The top barely reached past her breasts, which were prominently on display via the deep cleavage. In fact, if one looked closely they could actually see the underside of her breasts peeking just under the top. A see-through, red cloth covered her mouth. Her hair was covered by a kerchief made of the same see-through substance, allowing her blonde hair to be visible. Her long hair came out from under the shawl, displaying her alluring blonde tresses. Willow was wearing the same thing, but blue, contrasting her red hair nicely. Both girls eyes wore made up with dark and black colors, offering two deep penetrating alluring eyes as the only thing truly visible from the face. Their lips were made up bright red, but the mouth-covering cloth hid most of them. Willow's breasts, although slightly smaller than Buffy's, were just as prominent. Buffy had actually delighted in realizing that Willow wasn't as flat-chested as she appeared in her usual outfits.

"Do we have another costume?" Willow questioned Buffy, who shook her head. "Than we don't have a choice," Willow spoke and took in their visages. The frilly earrings, and the frilly edges of the garments, broidered with gold, and green, gave them an additional look of allure. Their stomachs where naked, showing off their belly buttons. The pants part of their outfit had frilly edges as well, and two soft brushes hanging by their hips. Willow's were red, while Buffy's were yellow. The part that kept the pants up was tight, and high cut, not quite a thong but close. Half see-through substance started at the tight panties part and blossomed out over their ass, thighs, and down their legs. This way, if someone took their time, they could actually see parts of the girls' ass cheeks. Also the tiny covering part of the pants, was far too tight and small to allow for panties underneath them, except perhaps a tiny g-string, but what did that matter? When they found that out, it had brought a whole new slew of insecurities and doubts about this idea in both girls, but they had convinced each other, and with each other's support put it on. The pants weren't closed though, in strategic positions, like the outward side of the upper legs and lower legs there were slits - thus as their legs moved, they'd give on occasion sights of their lovely legs.

Finally their shoes. Buffy had suggested to forego the traditional shoes and put high heels on instead. Buffy wore a white pair of her own, while Willow had found a red pair of Buffy's mother that fit her quite right. Buffy had put a letter on the kitchen table explaining the missing shoes, as well as their chaperoning duty. It was almost half past three now, the chaperoning started at four, and her mother wasn't due to return from work until well after five. They looked amazing. Willow only wished she had a tan like Buffy, that she didn't look almost as pale as a vampire . . . usually, for the big difference between the two was that Willow's skin looked completely green from the paint.

Buffy told Willow, "We can cut some holes in sheets and go as ghosts."

Willow was tempted for a moment: this _/so/_ wasn't her. She did not display herself like this: she couldn't do sexy - what was she thinking? But her anger at Lotion returned, as well as her boosted confidence of the past few months, and a determination not to let herself be beaten down again. "No, we're harem girls for tonight, and me an alien one, you remember what we planned?" Willow answered and then asked Buffy. Buffy nodded, looked at Willow, and smiled. Her doubt was quickly evaporating as well; this was going to be fun.

-----

Xander didn't know what hit him. He had just rung the bell, and then two visions of beauty, sexiness, and lustful, sexual fantasies opened the door. His jaw dropped, when both girls bowed deeply, actually sank to one knee, or perhaps just almost, and they said together, "Greetings, great master Xander. Please, allow your humble wives to bid you entrance."

Willow and Buffy slowly rose to their feet again, but heads bowed they gestured inside. Xander shook his head, and half stumbled, half walked inside. "Great thousand and one nights, what a . . . harem? With an Orion slave . . . oh, boy." Xander could hardly believe the visions of submissiveness. The two sets of deep dark eyes, with their mouth and nosed half-withdrawn from sight, gave the two an incredible, mysterious sexiness - even his best friend since kindergarten. There was really no way around it, Willow was hotness personified, as was Buffy - but in fact, the green made her more alluring; the ultimate Science Fiction enjoyer sexual fantasy. He let his eyes glide over the clothes and the skin they showed - wondering how their backsides looked in those skimpy briefs with see-through, swirly pipes attached. Then the high heels. Looking back into their eyes he felt himself grow warm. Damn the look both girls somehow put in their eyes. They were both blazing with strength, triumph, intelligence and confidence, while a certain something shimmered there that Xander could only call sweetness, submission, and weakness. The combination made the look practically irresistible. Their nod at his question - and he just new they were giving him a pouting smirk - made them even more alluring. Then Willow decided to go with the role, realizing she made a little mistake. She took off her mouth covering garment, let it drop suggestively slow to the floor, opened her mouth, and licked her upper lip in a sexual predator manner. A shudder ran down Xander's body, before he stated, "I renounce spandex, girls." Xander felt the need to slap himself, the almost possessive 'girls' had just slipped out automatically at their sights.

Neither girls seem to mind though, in fact they seemed to welcome it: tonight they would. Tonight they were Xander's harem. Both fighting off giggles, they gently bowed in gratefulness, displaying their cleavage in an even more inviting manner, and Buffy said flattered, "Thank you, master." Xander realized with some surprise that - unlike he had earlier thought it would - his short time as sex slave in training was not diminishing his appreciation for these visions.

The girls rose back up again, and Xander was shocked at the continued role play game, so he asked, "Are you going to call me that all night long?"

Buffy was too busy stifling her laughter to answer, but Willow managed a confused, yet respectful furrow of her eyebrows, and asked with just a hint of force from her Orion heritage, "Of course, master. What else would we call you?"

That was really too much for Buffy and she burst out in laughter. Willow chuckled along, and Buffy got herself back under control, and said, "I'm sorry, I'll try better."

"As your, master, I should give you a spanking for that," Xander played along, smiling brightly.

Buffy gasped, and exclaimed, "Xander!" She quickly bettered herself, adding, "Master, no, please don't, I'll be better."

"You're forgiven then, wives," Xander said and turned around, offering his arms. The girls hooked their arms into his, and Buffy having her right hand free opened the door.

"You look good to, Xander," Willow complimented with a smile.

"Not as good as you do," he said and stepped outside. Buffy unhooked her arm so she could close and lock the door. That done, Buffy hooked her arm back into Xander's, and she said, taking her costume in for a moment, "We're lucky we live in California."

-----

The high heels clicked on the pavement, and it affected Xander greatly as he led the two girls through Sunnydale to their school. "Sweet . . . you two are going to get me killed, you know that?" Xander asked a little embarrassed at who, and how they were dressed he had on his arms and what affect it had on him. He really hoped the stirring didn't grow in a full blown erection, and if it did that it was lying against his skin, not forming a tent. These two really didn't play fair.

"Oh?" Willow asked innocently, _/much/_ to innocently according to Xander.

"If a heart attack won't do it, it'll be the jealous guys in school that will," Xander answered her, only half-joking.

"Thank you for the compliment, master Xander," Buffy answered sweetly. Oh, man! The girls giggled. He was _/so/_ dead!

-----

They arrived at the school, and prepared to enter. "Xander!" a familiar voice yelled. Xander turned around and his eyes widened. Cordelia came over, wearing about the same thing as Buffy and Willow, except hers was green and she wasn't wearing high heels but some kind of puffy sandals.

Cordelia paused, taking in Buffy and Willow. Her eyes widened, and then narrowed in anger. How could they _/dare/_ to wear the same thing she'd decided to wear? Didn't they know you were meant to check first with Cordelia before you wore something to check if the queen of Sunnydale High wasn't wearing the same thing? Buffy's and Willow's eyes narrowed right back, ready to defend their 'master' the way slave girls would from interlopers. The green skin on Willow was a puzzle for Cordelia though, but she ignored it. "Hello, Xander," Cordelia said seductively, while Xander just looked with wide eyes at her. This really just couldn't be happening. "You'll come by the bronze when you're done with the brats won't you." Three harem girls, one an Orion one: what was a hormonal teenager's mind to do but melt down? Xander nodded slowly, feeling himself heat up through his body, especially since Buffy's and Willow's free hands touched him possessively. "Good," Cordelia purred, and then turned around. Xander's gaze went down, as Cordelia purposefully swayed her hips and ass. The narrow high-cut panty-like part of the pants offered up a large part of Cordelia's buttocks. Xander's eyes widened, and imagined his two best friends backsides in the same manner. Oh, boy, there was the erection he'd been fearing-

-No! Control yourself! Icebergs, snakes, castration . . .- Xander thought and it was work-

"Nihau! Xander!" Xander turned his head to the right and saw the Amazon girl, now dressed like another Amazon - namely Wonder Woman - bound to him. She had died her hair black for the part apparently, she obviously hadn't had the time to put in the curls Wonder Woman often had, because her hairdo was further still the same, right down to the ribbons. Her star-spangled panties were high-cut, her golden and red bustier were tight around her large breasts and had a very deep cleavage, her high-heeled red boots with white lines fit her perfectly, the tiara looked awesome, the bullet-proof and laser reflecting cuffs finished the look. "You like?" Lotion asked and made a twirl. Three harem girls - Cordelia had actually stopped and turned to take in her final rival - looked with angry looks at the Amazon.

"Spandex is back," Xander muttered as he took her in. -Oh, no!- Xander thought, as his erection really was unstoppably now. He was relieved as hell when he noticed it was standing straight up, not forming a tent, so his condition could hopefully stay hidden until it went away. But it wasn't his fault! Three harem girls, one an Orion slave girl, and Wonder Woman - a century old man in his death throws wouldn't be able to keep it down. Lotion smiled sweetly, while Buffy and Willow felt disappointed, and pained that it seemed the Wonder Woman get up was more of a hit than their harem girls outfits. Lucky for them, Xander added softly without thought, "Frilly not gone, I'm multi-preference guy now." Buffy and Willow straightened their backs again, glaring at Lotion.

The Amazon took in the Slayer and the redhead, and then said, "I knew it. Pig-nosed girl, and skeleton have _/no/_ self-esteem and are hypocrites. Look at you . . ."

"Now listen here, you bitch!" Buffy yelled back interrupting the Amazon. "With Halloween you're supposed to come as something you're not! I can wear whatever the hell I want to wear, and it doesn't make me anything!"

"Stupid pig-nosed- . . ." Lotion started.

This time Willow cut in, being dressed like a ferocious Orion slave girl, made this so much easier, "You stop insulting us, three-year-old ribbons-in-your-hair! You're the skank that falls in love with a guy that beats you up!"

"Light house not- . . ."

"SHUT UP!" Xander yelled out, fed up with the fighting girls, his erection gone. They did. "You three stop insulting each other, and start acting like the friends you are, damn it! I'm tired of this."

"FRIENDS!?" Buffy exclaimed in disbelief. "We're not friends!"

"If you weren't, you would have tried to beat her up already, even if you couldn't win! And Willow, you would have complained more about her to me and Buffy," Xander explained, stunning the girls, and then stalked toward the entrance.

"They're not friends of mine! You forced me to interact!" Lotion exclaimed.

Xander turned around, and grinned, "Nope, I forced you not to attack them, I never said anything about simply ignoring them, which you would have if you didn't consider them friends somewhere." Xander then entered the school, disappearing from sight.

The three girls stood silently watching each other for a few moments. "Xander's wrong," Buffy said, and nodded with satisfaction at that statement and followed him inside. Willow and Lotion looked at each other for a little longer, then narrowed their eyes at each other, before following Buffy.

Inside, the band guitarist, one Daniel 'Oz' Osbourne was busy with his locker. He closed it and turned around. His eyes widened widely when he saw Willow and Lotion walk by. The girl he had seen as an Eskimo was now dressed like an Orion slave girl. She looked incredible. "Who- . . . he- . . ." Oz started to call.

With a thud a large guy dressed as a pirate crashed into Oz back first. It was Larry, and he looked around, for a moment a frightened look on his face, as he had just avoided Xander, the guy who had picked him off the ground that morning. Needing to vent his emotions, he latched onto Oz, and growled, "Hey, you little runt! Can't you watch where your going!?"

Oz tried to go around Larry on either side, but was blocked to his utter frustration. "You're the one who- . . ." he tried finally.

Larry shoved him hard against the locker, and said, "Are you speaking back to me?"

Oz looked up annoyed, he could make this a fight, but the girl. He shook his head. "Good, coward," Larry told him and left him. Oz looked back down the corridor.

"Damn," he muttered when he couldn't find her anymore.

-----

"Buffy Summers, you just love to prove how much of a vagrant you are, don't you?" Snyder's voice sneered at harem girl Buffy. Buffy looked at him, wanting to say something, but Snyder ignored her, pointing and said, "Here's your group. Just don't talk to them, they don't need your negative influence." Snyder then turned around and walked up the stairs.

Buffy ended her angry stare, realizing she couldn't take it out on the kids by staying angry. She turned to her group, bent forward a bit, and started with a smile, "Hi- . . ."

"UH!"

Buffy looked up a little startled, seeing Snyder turned around, and pointing a warning finger at her. Her shoulders slumped, and Snyder continued his trek upstairs. Once he was out of sight, she said, "Come on, guys."

Willow took her own group along, and Xander took in his proteges. "Some tips," Xander said with a big grin. "On sleazing extra candy: tears are key. Tears will normally get you the double-bagger. You can also try the old 'you missed me' routine, but it's risky. Only go there for chocolate. Understood?"

"Yes, sir," the kids shouted happily in choir, nodding their hands.

"Okay, troops," Xander said taking lead. The kids turned as one, where their faces were visible, their smiles could be seen. "Let's move out!" Xander said, pointing in the direction with his plastic gun, and he started walking, the kids - single-file - walked dutifully after him.

Lotion looked at her group of trick or treaters, and then smiled at them. "You guys have luck," Lotion told them with a grin, "if I had forgot to ask friends about trick or treat, I wouldn't even know what to do." The kids looked at each other with dubious expressions after that statement. "Let's go, we get most candy of all," Lotion said, and then led her group outside.

-----

Ethan Rayne finished his spell to roman god of chaos Janus, and the magic spread outward. Deo felt the magic pass her by when she finished a dish, and looked up. It was just getting dark out, and Deo thought of what she felt. "Hmm, magic," she thought with dread. "Doesn't feel good, don't know much about magic, certainly not western magic. I should look up the expert."

-----

The nice old lady bent forward and said, "Oh, don't you look cute. Let's see what we've got- . . ." Bent down to look in her goodies bag, she failed to see the kids dressed as demons turn into _/actual/_ demons. The first grabbed the lady's throat and squeezed hard, growling.

"Hey!" Willow called out in shock. "What are you doing!?" She took several steps forward, grabbing for the 'kid'. A demon next to the first wanted the 'treat' too and reached for the lady. The first demon slapped the second's hand away, and then started fighting each other. The old lady regained her breath, shrieked and fled into her house, closing the door.

"Stop that!" Willow exclaimed, and noticed the change in the boys. She felt something coming, and quickly told the still normal kids who looked frozen in shock, "Go! Run! Ugh!" The kids snapped out of their stupor and ran away screaming as Willow staggered back. Then she stopped, took a deep sensual breath and righted herself. She let her head roll around, stretched her back, and licked her upper lip. "Mmh, whoa, what am I doing here? Where _/is/_ here?" she said and looked around, noticing the fighting monsters. "What species are you?"

The monsters stopped their struggling, looked over at her, and got up. They growled at the green woman, seeing a tasty treat. Willow bared her teeth suddenly, and growled right back from the back of her throat. She could growl sensually, but this was nothing but a ferocious growl. The monsters went rigid, then turned around, and ran away screaming. Willow righted herself again, pushed her bosom out, and looked around. "Damn," she spoke suddenly. "I better find my master quick, or a way back to him. If he gets angry I'll get whipped again, and I don't want another one already." Willow gingerly touched her ass, and was surprised it didn't sting. She turned around and looked, no characteristic discoloring. "Then again . . ." she said with a sexy grin, thinking she had been away longer than she had thought. Perhaps she had been drugged; but who would beam away and drug a sex toy from her master? Confused she started out to find out answers, and hopefully her master. She paused for a moment, then reached up to her head and found the shawl. With raised brows of confusion she ripped it away. She shook her head letting her red hair toss about a bit, and then settle naturally. Soon she focused on the street, and found chaos.

-----

Private Xander Harris rose up, machine gun against right shoulder, peering along his scope, ready to pull the trigger when necessary. Chaos everywhere, women and children screaming, and running from monsters - some human, some distinctly inhuman. Private Harris assessed the situation, and realized he didn't have enough intelligence or for that matter a mission briefing on what was going on. He better not come to any conclusions, and only work on self-defense for a while.

A monster jumped at him, and he shot it. The demon dropped to the floor in pain, and to Private Harris' shock he watched as the wound started closing. Quickly he slammed the butt of his machine gun hard into the monster's head. To his relief, the monster slumped into unconsciousness, even while its wound continued healing.

"Master! You are here!" a voice called enthusiastically and Xander swivelled around, machine gun back in firing position. He looked directly at a very scantily dressed, green-painted woman.

"Who are you?" Private Harris snapped out reflexively.

"Who am I?" Willow asked in surprise. "But Master, don't you recognize your third wife, and sex slave?"

"Why would I have three wives? Why would I have a sex slave? And why would I marry a woman who paints herself green?" Xander snapped out his questions.

"Paints herself . . .?" Willow said, and looked down. She looked back up and said in shock, "I'm not painted, my skin is green; all Orions have green skin." She rubbed furiously over her left arm, the color did not change or blur out, "See, master?"

"I am not your master," Xander answered her. Strange, she seemed familiar somehow, and yet he knew for certain he never saw her before in his life.

Willow sighed, and said, "Whoever placed us here, must have tampered with your brain."

"Look out!" Xander exclaimed, and Willow turned around. A demon came flying and her arm suddenly shot out, slamming the heal of her hand in the flying demon's chin, with a quick yell.

The demon flew back and rolled around, surprising private Harris, and Willow hissed, "Don't you dare touch my master!"

"We require a more strategic position," Xander stated calmly, covering the street with his gun.

"Of course, master, but where? I am unfamiliar with this place," Willow said, arched back.

"That way is as good as any," Xander said and started walking, weirded out that the green girl continued to call her master. Willow nodded and followed her master, bent through her knees, ready to pounce, and looking around.

They walked like that down the street, but saw nothing familiar. Until . . .

"AAAH!" sounded and a girl came running from a side street. A blonde girl that was wearing a red harem outfit.

"Buffy," Willow said in surprise.

"MASTER!" the girl screamed when she recognized Xander. She changed course and slid to her knees in front of him. "Save me, master!"

"I am _/not/_ your master," Xander said in annoyance as two growling demons appeared from the side street.

"Of course you are. You are our great, strong, master. Willow?" Buffy whimpered, looking with up dazzled eyes at Xander, utterly in love.

"His mind was tampered with," Willow said gently to the sweet Buffy.

Xander rolled his eyes in irritation, aiming for the demons, and said, "I think we've got more important things to deal with right now, don't you?"

"You are right, master, as always," Willow said smiling, and turned to the onrushing demons.

Surprising them all, a woman came rushing in, and beat the crap out of both demons in an instant. And then neatly dragged the unconscious demons off the street. Deo came walking over, took the gun in for a moment, and then said, "Do not kill the demons. They are children dressed for Halloween, but magic has turned them into their costumes. Should you kill them, I do not know whether they will be brought back to life when the spell is broken. You too changed into your costumes."

"Ma'am, that is ludicrous," Private Harris stated.

"Of course, everyone knows magic doesn't exist," Willow stated calmly, making Deo look at the two of them. "Perhaps we're in a holosuite that's malfunctioning, that could explain this. What do you think, master?"

Deo sighed, and said, "Get to 1630 Revello Drive, around the corner. She has a key, you can hole up in there." The thirty-something-year-old woman looked around the neighborhood, where the chaos was still going on. Luckily, she considered, most of the ones not affected had already returned screaming to their houses, leaving only the ones affected; and their supernatural existence should keep them mostly safe, or at least alive for the time being. "I'll get to someone who can solve this, now hurry." Deo then ran onward.

"What should we do, master?" Buffy asked whimpering.

Xander took a deep breath, and decided, "We don't have anything to lose, we might as well check out the address. Let's move out."

"Yes, master," the girls answered together and followed Xander down the road.

-----

Elsewhere in Sunnydale, Spike with four more vampires behind him stepped through the chaos. Pirates fought demons, Jedi fought pirates; damsels in distress ran screaming soon finding a noble knight to protect them, and the occasional unchanged ones were running, screaming and/or hiding similarly. "I like this," the vamped out Spike said with a grin. "Oh, I really like this, I can work with this. Boys, imagine, out here, somewhere, is a Slayer who doesn't even know who or what she is." The other vampires chuckled evilly. "Let's find her, and bring some of the new recruits, I'm certain they'll join us when we explain the treat that is waiting for them." Spike then laughed loudly.

-----

Wonder Woman looked around her. Magic and demons. She had faced both before, although the latter was more uncommon. One demon was chasing a girl in an elaborate blue dress that was screaming. Wonder Woman always helped those that couldn't help themselves. She flew forward and knocked the small demon out with a solid fist to its chin. The reaction she got from the girl was unexpected though. The girl looked with confusion and fear at her, and then ran onward with a scream.

"Now that was unexpected," Wonder Woman, aka Diana, Princess of Paradise Island and Amazon ambassador to the United States told herself. She looked around, and chaos was truly everywhere. She could start beating demons up or killing them, but until she found out what was going on, where she was and how she got here that wouldn't be very productive. Wonder Woman took to the air, but stayed low so she could keep close watch and get down fast enough if any of the demons were about to attack another innocent. Oddly enough, most of those that seemed human were fighting back, or fighting amongst each other, some dressed as pirates, and cowboys . . . She shook her head, this was just utter chaos, a free for all. "What the . . ." Wonder Woman muttered in shock, lowering herself to the floor. She took a better look, got another glimpse and was gone. Had that really been Spider-man slinging between the houses? That couldn't be; super hero comics didn't really work in a world with real life super heroes, but Spider-man was one of the very few exceptions. The story of a young guy trying to do what's right in a world that hates all super humans had a powerful appeal to the people of her world, and indeed even the super heroes. There were often debates among a few super heroes that ranged around, 'What would you do if you were in that situation?' It was also a reminder that they were probably very lucky with a race of humans that at least accepted them, if not revered them in comparison to that. That really couldn't have been Spider-man, could it?

She shook her head and looked around, seeing a group of three humans or at least humanoids, one a soldier, the other two women in harem girl clothes, one of them with green skin. The outfits were an affront to her feminist sensibilities, but she would reserve judgement. Now, she couldn't quite place the fatigues, they seemed old, but she was pretty certain it was American. He might have an idea of what was going on. She walked to them, and said, "Hail, soldier, I hoped you know what is going on."

Xander had twisted around and pointed his gun directly at a woman dressed as wonder woman. He relaxed his stance, but just a bit. "Not really, everything is chaos, I just heard an explanation but that was too strange for words," Private Harris explained quickly and to the point. "These two civilians have come under my protection, you can join us if you wish."

Wonder Woman frowned, and asked, "Why would I need protection?"

Xander's eyebrows raised, and said, "Because you're an unarmed civilian?"

"I am Wonder Woman," Wonder Woman stated as if that explained anything.

Private Harris looked at her silently for a moment, and then groaned in frustration. "Master?" Buffy questioned uncertain. Willow just looked suspiciously at the interloper.

"Master?" Wonder Woman exclaimed in shock.

Xander shook his head and looked up at the sky, muttering, "Great, two of them think they're my slaves, now a third thinks she's a comic book character. Really awesome! And where's the brass when you need them?"

"Comic book character!?" Wonder Woman asked in surprise. "I'm as real as anyone, and I'm right here. I don't think I should take a slave driver's word for anything."

"Slave- . . ." Private Harris shook his head again, and said, "Okay, Lady, are you coming with us or not. If you do, shut up and follow us."

"What!? I am _/WonderWoman/_ !" Wonder Woman exclaimed in annoyance. "I don't take orders from a simple soldier. You should be following mine, the governments of the world have given me jurisdiction, understood?"

Xander sighed, everything would soon be even more fubar if he went and followed the orders of a loon, and so he told her, "Look, lady, insane or not, Wonder Woman or not, you can either be part of the solution, or part of the problem. We're going to what was said to be a safe house. You're either with us or not, but if you are, you follow my orders, it's that simple."

Wonder Woman was taken aback by that, and watched as his companions suddenly looked at him with huge admiring - if not downright worshiping - and aroused eyes. It was obvious they were staying with him . . . and she was sworn to protect those who couldn't defend themselves after all. "Fine," she said with a little annoyance. "I'll follow your orders."

Xander nodded satisfactorily, and walked past her. She joined the outer ranks of the little entourage, and watched with the disgust as the two girls looked at the soldier with adoring, obedient eyes. The disgust grew when she noted that the see-through pants allowed her to see a glistening beneath both the girls' crotches. By Hera, they had gotten aroused by his show of masculinity. She sighed, this was going to be a long day. As they walked to this 'safe house', she suddenly remembered Spider-man when she thought over this soldier's claims she was a comic book character. Perhaps she hadn't just switched locales, but also dimensions? Could she be a comic book character here? Things were really getting more strange by the moment.

Xander quickly walked onward, moving his gun from left to right. He had read the street name, and was now reading numbers to find the right one. He ignored several demons chasing a few kids down the street. "We have to help them," Wonder Woman stated when she saw it.

"No, we do not," Xander answered annoyed. "I have no intelligence on the situation, or the mission, and you have been placed under my protection. Until I know more about the situation I will keep reasons for the mission and your safety to go fubar at a minimum."

"Fubar, master?" Willow wondered.

Wonder Woman spoke, "Could letting innocent little children be torn to shreds be part of mission objectives?"

Xander froze, thought, and then rose in defeat, "Fine, I'll go get them, but if they slit our throats in our sleep, I will petition death you be sent to hell. Willow, protect these two." Xander then ran off.

Wonder Woman had in mind to go with him, but the casual way he dismissed her as a valuable asset to such an extent she needed protection kept her rooted to the floor in shock and annoyance for just a moment too long. Buffy leaned over to Willow and said, "They really feebled master's mind, didn't they? He would never have accepted such a tone from a woman."

Willow nodded, and said, "Master, don't worry, when I find who did it, I shall make them pay dearly." Willow suddenly looked up, as she noticed a bunch of demons started to encircle them. "They don't seem particularly friendly," Willow said with a grimace, and putting herself in a ready stance.

Private Harris by now had rounded a corner and was out of sight. Not out of hearing, though. Several shots were heard, while one little demon jumped at the group of three women. Wonder Woman simply caught the demon by its leg, and flung it off in another direction, slamming into a few more demons and bringing them down. Then Xander reemerged, carrying two frightened children. He paused then, and waved at them. The three women saw it, as Willow knocked down another demon, and then the three of them ran toward Xander who ducked into a garden.

A few moments later, with the demons not too far behind them, they ducked into the same garden and house. "Buffy, the key," Xander said gesturing for her too hurry up, while the kids he held up started crying.

"But I don't have a- . . ." Buffy complained padding herself down to show she was right. She bumped against something hard wrapped into something soft near her waist. She looked down. It was a small pouch, which hung from the waist of her pants on a hanger. She opened the pouch and to her shock retrieved a key. Xander rapidly took it, unlocked the door and swung it open.

"Hurry!" called out, taking the kids and handing over one to either harem girl as they rushed inside. "Hurry, hurry, hurry, move!" Xander called out, gesturing for Wonder Woman, who promptly went inside. Xander did too and closed the door rapidly. Just before he closed it there was a loud sound of demons crashing against the door. The door opened a bit with the impact and closed right away with Xander's pushing. He pushed hard against the door to keep the demons out. Wonder Woman joined him in his efforts and a moment later the door was closed and once more locked. "We need to barricade it," Xander said, and he and girls went to look for something. A table, and a few stairs were quickly donated.

-----

"Hello, Rupert."

Giles suddenly stood straight from alphabetizing his filing cabinets. He whirled around and looked directly at Jenny Calendar dressed like a French Maid. "Jenny . . . I- uh . . ."

Jenny grinned and seductively walked over while saying, "I knew you would be up to this, doing some filing on a nice night like this." Giles found himself blocked by his cabinet as Jenny pressed herself against him. "So I thought to myself, my boyfriend will be all alone, what should I do? And I realized, it was about time we take this to the next level."

"Uh . . ." Giles managed, as his body heated up quickly. Jenny pressed her crotch area, barely covered by a tiny black skirt against his, and then pressed her lips against his. A moment later her tongue slipped into his mouth.

With a whoosh the library doors were swung open. "Stop the smooching," an authoritative voice commanded.

Giles and Jenny quickly parted and a flustered Giles spoke, "W-we were n-no- . . ."

"You were, and we don't have time for this," Deo spoke stopping right in front of Giles and Jenny. "We've got trouble, it seems everyone turned into their costume."

"E-everyone?" Giles asked.

Deo nodded, "Yes- well, actually I think I've seen a few exceptions."

"Like me," Jenny commented, gesturing to her almost pornographic costume.

"Certainly my daughter's future husband and his friends, as well as my daughter were affected," Deo stated quickly. "I felt the wave of magic wash over me, it was almost tangible, I came to here immediately - after kicking out a few customers."

His charges! Giles was all business now, and asked, "Any commonalities to the ones affected."

Deo thought it over, and then said, "My daughter, her future husband and his friends went to get costumes together, it would be the same store; what did she call it again? E- . . . Enad's, no, Ethan's, that's it: Ethan's!"

"I got mine at Party Town," Jenny commented, even as Giles went rigid. It couldn't be, it had to be coincidence!

"Do you have an address?" Giles asked coolly.

Deo frowned for a moment, and then said, "No, but I know it's near Wal Mart."

Giles went over to his weapons cabinet and took out an axe, then walked resolutely out the library, saying, "Stay here, I'll handle this."

"You su- . . ." Deo started.

"Yes," and Giles was out of sight.

"Wow," Jenny purred with a smile.

"What?" Deo asked the other woman.

Jenny grinned at her, and said, "I've never seen his take-charge, bugger-all, determined side, didn't know he had such a side; it's very . . . hmm . . ."

-----

The demons had given up getting in - for now at least.

"Now that we have time," Willow said with a smirk, walking over to Xander with swaying hips. "Would you like a relaxing blowjob, master?" Willow licked her lips.

"By two of your wives?" Buffy added, coming to stand next to Willow. Xander's eyes bugged out in disbelief. This was just so . . .

"Uh, ladies, I'm sorry, but no, there are children present," Xander tried to get away, pointing at the two scared little kids sitting on the couch.

"Hmm, intercourse, threesome, upstairs, please, master?" Buffy asked.

"No!" Xander said forcefully, but not unkind. "Get your minds out of the gutter, they may be back at any time!" He then walked away from them.

Wonder Woman looked at them, and they looked at her. "You two are disgusting," she said, shaking her head.

"So are you, bitch," Willow hissed out, as Buffy glared at the super heroine.

Xander stopped when he saw the picture on the dresser in the hallway. He blinked, and then picked up the photograph. Two of the girls with him on the picture wasn't a big surprise, but that he was himself on there was. He frowned at the smiling face, and the smiling faces of the girls with him. The redhead seemed very shy. "Hey, perhaps that woman wasn't completely full of it after all," Xander called, then turned around to show the picture.

The three girls came over, and while Buffy and Willow took in the picture, Wonder Woman asked, "Full of it?"

"She claimed we turned into our costumes through magic," Xander spoke with raised eyebrows.

"Magic is real," Wonder Woman confirmed casually, not that the crazy woman had much leeway with Xander. Wonder Woman though, started thinking; costume, Spider-man, comic book character. She was _/not/_ Wonder Woman?

"Hey, that really does look like me, somewhat," Buffy muttered taking in the picture.

"That can't be me!" Willow exclaimed, practically in horror. "Look at that, all shy, and small, and hiding. Now look at me! I'm not even green on the picture. It's obviously doctored, or she just looks like me, or this is all holograms." Willow looked around the others, "Right, master?" Willow pouted with big hopeful eyes at Xander.

"Yeah, that's got to be it, or not, master?" Buffy said, looking hopefully at Xander, who felt the need to comfort them. Wonder Woman rolled her eyes at the pathetic display.

"That must be it," Xander said, figuring that if the woman succeeded it didn't matter much if they believed their identities now; in fact, it would be better strategically to have them have the mental strength to fight, and not just hide in a corner.

"Oh, good, you're all here, thank god, it's- . . ."

Xander turned, jumped forward and slammed the intruder up against the open door, the nuzzle of the gun against his jugular. "Don't move, scumbag," Xander commanded, and Angel looked with wide-eyed shock at Xander. Wonder Woman looked surprised, and the harem girls stayed back shocked behind their master. "See about the back door," Xander then ordered Wonder Woman who he was starting to suspect was 'actually' Wonder Woman; or precisely a magically induced 'real' Wonder Woman. Annoyed to be ordered around, but seeing the logic in the decision of her doing it, Wonder Woman quickly went to the back of the house.

"What's wrong with you, boy!? Chaos is out there, we need to do something! Buffy, tell him," Angel growled out. When he actually looked at Buffy and what she was wearing his eyes bugged out, and his jaw dropped.

"Tell my master?" Buffy asked confused, but undulating under the appreciative look. She gave Willow a look. The Orion shrugged. "I can't order my master to do anything," Buffy muttered.

"Master?" Angel exclaimed shocked, and then narrowed his eyes in suspicion. "Harris, what did you do?"

Xander growled, and told the intruder, "Nothing, and I'm the one with the gun pointed at your throat. You are the one who came barging in here; now who are you, before I pull the trigger."

Angel blinked several times. "You better do as he says," Willow surreptitiously said with a smile, shaking her tush suggestively. "Master never makes empty promises when it comes to punishment. If my ass could talk . . ."

Xander rolled his eyes, while Angel looked shocked at the green-skinned, submissive, sexual predator version of the girl he still saw as the sweet and shy type. Xander was really getting tired of the whole 'master' thing. Sure, it was a nice sexual fantasy for a night, but having mostly strangers go on about it all the time was getting annoying quickly. He pushed the gun harder and said, "Well?"

"I'm Angel, I'm a friend of all of you, you can trust me,"Angel spoke out loud. "We've fought the forces of darkness and stuff like this together."

"You fought in the gulf?" Xander asked with narrowed eyes.

Angel looked at him, and then said, "Yes, I'm still bummed that we didn't finish Saddam back then right away."

Xander looked at the guy, like with the others, despite the fact that he _/knew/_ he'd never met them before, there was something familiar about him. And the picture of him and the other two proved he should go with that feeling. "Apparently we all became our costumes," Xander commented to the vampire, whose eyes widened in understanding.

"HEEEELP!! AAAAH!" The high-pitched scream penetrated the house easily.

A moment later Wonder Woman returned, and said, "We need to help whoever that is."

"The back door?" Xander questioned as he went to the front door and looked out.

"Barricaded, a chair under the handle, couldn't find a key," Wonder Woman answered immediately; the annoyance starting to ebb away. The soldier's take charge attitude was familiar, beyond even the similarity with Batman from the League.

"I'll go get her, you keep this door closed while I'm gone," Xander said, while pulling aside the barricade. He unlocked the door, and tossed the key to Wonder Woman. A moment later he slipped out, and ran out on the chaos-filled street. He quickly found the source of the screaming. A young woman being chased by five monsters. Without taking her in, he grabbed her, pulled her aside, and shot several warning shots across the demons' heads. He really hoped he wouldn't be forced to kill any kids, he guessed he had to be lucky the first one he shot had a big healing capacity. The demons flinched, and slowed down, half afraid, half confused. It was really all he needed, he grabbed the girl around her waist, and pulled her along back to the house, saying, "Run!"

She did, and so did he. A few moments later they were back inside, and Wonder Woman and Angel were busy closing the door and rebarricading it. "Oh, Xander, you guys, I tried to fight them, but five was just too much," Cordelia Chase said breathing hard.

Buffy and Willow's eyes widened in recognition of the green-dressed harem girl. "Cordelia, you here too?" Willow asked with wide eyes, "Does that mean the others are too?"

It was then that both Xander and Wonder Woman took a good look, and both thought the exact same thing, -Not another one.-

"What the hell are you talking about?" Cordelia exclaimed in confusion.

Buffy clarified, "The head wife, the second, and the fifth, are they here too?" Cordelia looked at her, "The master has six wives remember? I'm six, Willow is three, you're four?" Buffy then pointed at Xander, "Master?"

"ME?! A harem wife!? Of Xander!?" Cordelia blurted out. Then added less powerfully, thinking, about why she had put the costume on in the first place, "Okay, that last is a possibility." Cordelia wouldn't be Cordelia if she hadn't added, "And you went mental when?"

Angel spoke up, "When whatever spell kicked in that made them become their costumes."

"WHAT!?" Cordelia exclaimed and then looked outside, remembering all the little demons. "Oh, shit."

"No, we are not. Magic does not exist, I'm an Orion," Willow stated with conviction.

Cordelia looked at Willow for a while, and then disappeared into the kitchen. Everyone looked at each other wondering. The faucet ran, closed, and then Cordelia returned. She walked over to Xander and splashed the water in his face.

"WHAT THE HELL IS THAT FOR!?" Xander demanded, and everyone but Cordelia looked with shock at the female Xander, and Xander equally shocked at the high-pitched voice that came from her throat and the sudden tightness of his uniform around his chest. She reached fort her throat with her left hand, and came along an obstruction. She felt her throat and then went down, fondling her left breast for a moment. She looked down, seeing her breasts straining against the fabric, one button threatened to spring open. She took a deep breath - the middle button sprung forming a diamond shape offering of parts of her breasts - and she screamed, "AAAAAH!! What the hell!?"

Cordelia looked pointedly at the female Xander, and said, "Xander, the guy he was before the costume took over, not Private Harris here, fell into a cursed pool of the drowned girl. Now cold water makes him a girl, warm water makes him a guy again."

Private Harris took himself in, and realized the newest member of Harem Girls Anonymous had proven the case, to him at least. "Oh, my god, master?" Buffy whispered in shock. Then rectified herself questioningly, "Mistress?"

Buffy turned to her companion, and the green-skinned Willow looked at Buffy in shock. "You were saying about magic?" Cordelia said coolly. Cordelia then noticed Wonder Woman looking at her, and bit out, "What are you looking at?"

"What you're wearing: degrading, unfeminist," Wonder Woman stated.

"And what do you call yours?" Cordelia told the super heroine bluntly indicating the skintight almost naked costume. "At least I'm mostly covered up, you can't even see my mouth," Cordelia said and pointed at the green half see-through cloth in front of her mouth. Wonder Woman glared at Cordelia and was about to say something when a powerful slam rocked the front door. Everyone turned to look at it, and Angel jumped forward and peeked behind a curtain. "It's Spike," Angel said.

"Who?" a chorus of voices asked, effectively ending their philosophizing about what was happening.

"Trust me, it's bad," Cordelia said with a hint of fear.

-----

Outside one of the vampires asked Spike, "What will this help? We can't get in without an invitation." A costume demon crashed into the front door again, and then turned away for the second to crash into it.

"We can't, but they can," Spike said with a huge grin. "You two, go around back." To dark-brown demons looked at Spike, chuckled and growled at the same time, and sped off. "This is going to be fun," Spike said, looking around at the at least sixteen demons around him.

-----

Inside Wonder Woman was pushing back against the door. "Their strength is nothing compared to mine, I'll be able to keep this up for hours," Wonder Woman relayed to the others.

"Good," Xander said with a grin, with any luck between then and now the woman that had known what was going on had solved the problem at the source. Taking charge of the situation had temporarily alleviated her concerns about her now female state, and she was throwing herself into it fully

There was a crash of glass from the kitchen, and Angel quickly sped to it. A moment later the large window of the living room shattered and dropped. "Fuck, Buffy stay with the kids," Xander cursed, and went to the two demons climbing in. Wonder Woman took a step back from the door, when she realized those demons too were going for the window.

Buffy nodded her head in fright, and went to the children, coaxing them to trust her and taking them by hand, one on either side. She returned to the middle, so she had as many avenues of escape as possible to protect the children . . . and herself.

At the same time, Willow quickly appeared next to Xander, baring her teeth at the demon. "You won't touch my ma- mistress," she whispered dangerously, but the ever increasing numbers of demons were not impressed. The fight started a moment later, with a frightened Buffy holding two frightened children by hand watching.

"Buffy!" Xander called slamming the butt of her gun into a demon's face - it would be so much easier if she could just shoot them. "See if the way out back is free!"

Buffy jerked and then fearfully nodded, "Yes, master." She shook her head, rectifying, "Mistress." She quickly sped into the kitchen, taking the kids along, looking frightened as Angel was fighting two demons - one large, one small - that had come through the kitchen door after smashing in its glass, and wiggling away the chair. Swallowing fearfully she went around the table and looked out the window. There didn't seem to be any more demons outside. She didn't know what to do. What did master want? Report now? Or wait till this ally had taken care of the demons? Or take the children as far away right now as possible? She watched fearfully as Angel slammed the little demon against a door post, and it slumped into unconsciousness. The bigger demon tackled Angel to the ground, and Buffy fearfully circled further, away from the fighting couple and closer to the back door, the children went along.

The demon and the man struggled, the monster's mouth coming closer to Angel's neck. With effort Angel twisted them around so he was now on top. He forced the innocent man taken by magic down, and vamped out for extra strength. He the turned around, and said, "Buffy, the frying pan!"

"AAAH!!" Buffy and the children screamed in fright at Angel's vamp face. Buffy on her own added, as the kids started sobbing, "MASTER!! HELP!! HE'S A . . . HE'S A . . . VAMPIRE!!"

"Buffy, no, stay- . . ." Angel tried, but too afraid to think clearly, Buffy ran out the back door into the darkness, pulling the children along.

The demon then gave a howl into the air, and Angel looked down in confusion as most of the demon's struggling ceased. A moment later Xander with the others in tow entered. She slammed the demon on his head with the butt of her gun, and it slumped. "They all just . . . What the!?" Xander pointed the gun back at Angel.

"You're a vampire!?" Cordelia exclaimed in shock. Willow looked ferociously at Angel.

"I'm a good one! Some gypsies cursed me with a soul!" Angel called out in explanation.

"The blonde left with the children, the demons left," Wonder Woman observed as Angel got up and put away his game face.

"That's why it howled, they're after Buffy, they don't care about the rest of us," Angel quickly surmised. He explained, "She's the Chosen One to fight the forces of darkness, the Slayer, and she's been reduced to a frightened s- . . . sex slave."

"We have to find her and the kids, before this Spike does. Move out, troops," Xander commanded and smoothly ran past Angel and out the back door. The rest followed, and Xander said, "Which way did she go?"

"I can follow her scent," Angel said, and as Xander gestured he took point.

-----

The group walked fast through the night, following Angel's nose. They didn't run, they couldn't quite afford to run into traps, or lots of demons. Wonder Woman was annoyed. The green-skinned girl, and the other harem girl was who was annoying her. Both wore their outfit with a sense that it was them, although Cordelia somewhat less. Willow though, was worse, the same as the third, the blonde, they seemed to wear their subservience, their submissiveness, their stature as slave wife, as property with a righteousness, and almost pride they shouldn't be. They were human beings, women, they should be free, not chained and shackled. Even if it was a spell, she couldn't understand why the apparently very smart woman, and the other an independent champion of good would lower themselves to even put on a mere costume like that. It was . . . wrong to the Amazon.

"I do not understand you," she started looking with narrowed eyes from the 'Orion' to the Human. "Why would you lower yourselves to this? We are women, we are meant to be free, not slaves to a man's every whim. You are doing a disservice to everything feminism has fought for, for the past seventy years. How can you toss that just aside?"

Willow looked confused at Wonder Woman, and said, "Huh? I'm not from this planet remember? I've got no idea what you're talking about."

"Like feminism is so good," Cordelia mocked the super heroine. "I've heard the sounds from them lately; men are bad this, men are bad that, men are pigs thus. Hell, I've heard them say men should be locked away in cages, and only left alive for procreation."

Wonder Woman nodded painfully, and said, "All right, there are some bad apples, and the press seems to enjoy putting them on more for the sensation, but still the basics of equality are something that women are striving for, you're setting it back."

"By wearing a Halloween costume?" Cordelia asked incredulously as they walked along. "Besides, even if it weren't a simple Halloween costume, and Willow and Buffy chose this way of life on their own free will, they still wouldn't set back the movement."

"Whenever a woman chooses a man clearly above herself, she sets examples for girls to do the same," Wonder Woman answered her.

"Bullshit, the first thing of equality would mean women have equal free choice to choose their way of life like any man has," Cordelia argued getting worked up. She had always considered Wonder Woman and her views on feminism and others thinking like her as detrimental and Wonder Woman hypocritical. "That means _/any/_ choice even becoming a man's effective sex slave. You wish to take that very freedom of choice away from women again, and force them to choose something that is only sanctioned as 'good woman choice' by you and 'the movement', effectively destroying their freedom of choice and the very essence of equality and feminism." Wonder Woman had gotten darker with every moment that Cordelia's speech continued, especially since part of it ran uncomfortably true. Cordelia suddenly stopped, turned around and faced Wonder Woman directly. "In fact," Cordelia began, looking eye to eye with the amazon, as the others stopped and soon were going to intervene, "those women who chose this way of life, to become this sex slave, to wear these types of clothes constantly, obey, follow their own inner sexual desires, going straight against the party sanctioned female way of life, against what common ideas about good for women are, are some of the greatest feminists of these days. They take their right to choose, and do so, and let me tell you, against all criticisms and looked down upon, enjoying this degradation, wearing these clothes, because that's the way they feel, makes them much _/stronger/_ than you are. I mean, look at you, super strength, enough power to lift buildings out of the ground, and still you think the only way to defeat a man is flash him some skin - that's truly weak."

Wonder Woman was steaming by now, and said, "You take that back, or else I'll show just how 'weak' I am."

Cordelia just smirked, as Xander tried, "Now, ladies, we don't have time for this estrogen bat- . . ."

"Weak is right, you won't even lay a finger on me," Cordelia told the super heroine superiorly.

"That does it!" Wonder Woman exclaimed and pulled her fist back for a devastating punch. Her eyes widened when she felt her golden belt leave her middle. She looked down and saw Cordelia pull it away with her left hand. A moment later Cordelia planted her right fist into the Amazon's stomach and she doubled over with an oof. The cheerleader followed up with knee to her face, making the Amazon stand back up with a bloody knows. A right backhand followed and Wonder Woman dropped to the ground, and lay there unconscious.

Cordelia took a step forward and triumphantly held the golden belt of strength above the downed Amazon, and said, "When all your power and speed comes from an accessory, don't ever face the queen of accessorizing." She dropped the belt with a grin, and wiped her hands several times together in a 'that's that' manner.

The other three had gathered around, and looked dumbfounded at the defeated Amazon. "I can _/not/_ believe you," Xander muttered, while Angel looked equally dumbfounded, and Willow looked proud at the mistress's fourth accomplishment.

"Believe it, Xan," Cordelia said with a grin.

"You just knocked out Wonder Woman!" Xander called out in disbelief.

Cordelia nodded, "Yep."

Xander stood straight up, looked at Cordelia and said, "We're already outnumbered three to one at least, not counting the rest that's running around here, and then you go and knock out **-Wonder- -Woman-**!" Xander pointed heatedly at the defeated super heroine.

Cordelia blinked, examined that statement, and blanched. "Damn! I did it again! When will I learn not show off my superiority, aah!" she yelled at herself, stomping the street in frustration.

Private Harris slammed her head in her free hand and groaned. "All right, soldier, pick her up, I'm not leaving a man behind," she ordered looking at Angel. The vampire hesitated for a moment but then nodded and went to pick up Lotion come Wonder Woman.

Cordelia got an idea and took the belt, putting it on herself. "Hmm, now to test it." She looked around and quickly walked over to a car, grabbed it, and pulled with all her might. It didn't move. "SHIT!" Cordelia cursed and turned back to the others. "It only works with her."

Xander groaned, and ordered, "Let's move, we don't have much time."

"Yes, mistress," Willow answered sexily, and Private Harris groaned.

-----

Giles found himself in front of Ethan's costume shop, and resolutely entered. The door was open strangely. Once inside, he looked around, peering into the darkness.

"Ripper old friend, how have you been these past years?" a familiar voice spoke, and an equally familiar face became visible as the man it belonged to walked into the light.

"Ethan . . ." Giles hissed in angry recognition, "Rayne. I thought it was you, this has your stink all over it."

Ethan chuckled walking a little further, as Giles slowly walked around the table in the middle of the shop toward his old friend. Rayne spoke, "Look at you, mild-mannered, sweet, nice Watcher. Did you convince your Slayer this is really you? If she only knew. I'm right aren't I? A Slayer is the only reason you could be out here."

"A Watcher is what I am now," Giles said, the two men slowly coming closer.

"No you're not, Ripper. You may think you are, but beneath, there's still the good old rampaging Ripper," Ethan said with a grin.

"How do I break the spell?" Giles asked, gripping his axe better.

"Now why would I tell you, a mild-mannered watcher that?" Ethan asked with a grin.

A moment later the axe's handle smashed across Ethan's face, and he went down with a groan. "Not so mild-mannered," Giles hissed and continued his assault.

-----

Buffy breathed hard, running for all she was worth. She had broken off the heels of her shoes a while ago already. She and the kids had just entered a misty alley, filled with boxes and a truck. She had the distinct feeling she had chosen wrong. A pirate suddenly emerged on top of the truck, climbing around. He let himself drop to the asphalt, took in Buffy and said, "Arrr, now aren't you a tasty morsel."

Oh, my god! The kids weren't sobbing or crying anymore, they were just in shock. Buffy was slowly backing up, thinking, -Master will come save me. He will, he'll sweep in, like a knight in shiny armor, and save me! He won't allow another man to touch his property.- She squinted her eyes, willing it to be true, while the pirate was close enough she could smell his disgusting sweat.

"That far, and no further!" a female voice claimed, and footsteps came up right next to Buffy and the children.

Buffy opened her eyes and looked at the female soldier that was her mistress, "Master! I _/knew/_ you'd come and save me!"

"Heh, heh, two tasty morsels for the price of one," the pirate said, and lunged with his sword. Xander pushed the children and Buffy back, while she threw herself into the pirate's path. He used his gun as a shield, for the sword. The two weapons got entangled and dropped from both their hands. The tangle slid underneath the truck, out of reach. With a growl the pirate threw a punch, which Xander automatically deflected off to the side, and landed a solid left hook. The pirate's head snapped to his left, and then his whole body was just launched off his feet and slammed against the metal wall of a warehouse, then slumped to the ground.

"What the . . .?" Xander questioned and looked down at her hands. She had for a moment doubted if she had any strength as a woman, but what she just did attested to extreme amounts of strength - she'd have to be mountain of muscle to do that. There was something she had done . . . automatically.

"Oh, yeah, did I forget to mention you're an accomplished and very strong martial artist in your normal state?" Cordelia said from behind her. Xander whirled around and saw his group had caught up when he had gone ahead seeing Buffy's and the children's predicament.

Of all the timings: growls could be heard, and the group of demon hunters - now not quite so - looked around. A vampire appeared on both sides of the alley, along with several demons. A few of them too on the roofs ahead. Spike was one of those and he jumped down, landing smoothly. He took a drag from his cigarette, pulled it out, and said, "Well, well, well. What have got here? An outnumbered group of weakened goody two shoes . . . eat them."

Growls and roars followed as the demons and vampires charged. Xander smashed the first one into the wall, and ordered, "Inside!" They ran into the warehouse, to make their final stand.

-----

Giles' fist crashed across Ethan's chin, blood spurting forth. "Watcher training is pretty good, as well as expected to be followed regularly to keep in shape," Giles said, and kicked the other man in the stomach, making him double up in a fetal position, groaning and moaning. "Don't you agree Ethan?" Giles had a few cuts, and a bruise, but nothing like the condition Ethan was in.

Ethan spat blood at him, and said, "Go toss a salad."

Another fist smashed in his head, and it slammed hard against the wooden floor. "The spell, how do I break it?" Giles prepared to kick again.

"The bust!" Ethan exclaimed quickly. "Destroy it!"

Giles turned around and found the Janus bust standing on the table. He quickly reached over, picked it up, and smashed it on the floor. As it shattered, a white light flashed outward.

-----

Things were not going well. The kids were huddled beneath a stack of wooden boards. Lotion/Wonder Woman was lying nearby, with Angel in front of all three as protection, but he already had bruises and three demons were attacking him simultaneously. Buffy had gone into a corner, frightened to death, but Spike had grabbed her, pulled her back, and was taunting her before biting in her neck. Willow was being held by two powerful demons against another stack of wooden boards, while a third was ready to tear out her heart. Xander and Cordelia were fighting back to back against all the other demons. Although they had managed to knock out two demons, the others had managed to land some hits, and especially Cordelia was worse for wear. Not to mention, how long would they stay unconscious? Perhaps it was time to kill the innocent children.

"Well, ma'am, I must say you've been an incredible fighting experience for a civilian, it's been an honor. If you have any ideas, apart from killing innocent kids, now's the time," Xander told her with a grimace.

Cordelia thought, and suddenly she did have an idea. "Order your slaves to fight with everything they have, tell them trust their inner instincts, you still had them, so should they."

Xander turned her head and eyes to Cordelia for a moment, and gave a face that said, 'It's worth a shot.' "Willow, Buffy, fight with everything you have! Trust your inner instincts, now!"

"What!?" Willow exclaimed while she kept the third demon at bay with an outstretched leg that wouldn't last long, like she wasn't doing that already. Angel looked incredulous at what Xander had just said.

"Master?" Buffy whimpered, with Spike's fangs above her.

The bleached-blonde vampire looked up for a moment, and grinned, "No use fighting, Slayer, time to bloody well die."

"That's an order!" Xander stated forcefully, blocking another hit.

"Yes, master," both harem girls replied.

"OOF!!" Spike groaned out as Buffy's knee smashed into his stomach. With a yank her hands were free, and she followed it up with an uppercut to Spike's chin. The Brit was launched off her and landed painfully on the ground. With a quick jump Buffy was upright. She looked down at herself in shock, and then grinned.

"My turn," she said as Spike sat up and looked at her. Her right elbow slammed back, a wooden beam splintered, on piece shot up into the air and Buffy caught it, now having a stake.

Willow in the meantime, had channeled a magic spell Jenny had taught her without thought, speaking the words. The demons holding her were dislodged with a quick burst of pushing energy. Willow then grabbed the thrust of the third demon intended to tear out her hard, twisted and threw him over her shoulder. One of the first two demons had recovered and lunged. Willow twisted into the lunge, twisted the arm and sent the demon tumbling onward, crashing into his counterpart. The Orion stood straight, and looked astonished at her hands for a moment, muttering, "How do you fire energy from your hands?" She then charged a few of the demons surrounding Xander and Cordelia, who started to attack instead of just defend themselves.

Buffy clubbed the back of her makeshift stake across the back of a demon's head to her right - one that was surrounding her master - and it slumped promptly down. She jumped instinctively, made a twisting back kick in the air, slamming her foot into a vampire's head and staggering him back. A moment later her stake slammed into the vamp's heart and it dusted. She turned around, did the same with her stake, and wacked another demon across the head.

Xander smoothly jumped over her, and she knew why. "Chestnuts roasting on an open fire!" Xander called as she flew through the air. The vampire about to grab and bite Buffy in her neck, didn't know what hit him. A hundred punches to his chest in less than a second crushed most of its bones. To finish it, Xander made a final powerful punch across the vamp's face and he was launched twisting around his axis backward passed the entrance, and slamming in the wall across the alley.

"Thank you, mistress," Buffy said with a grin, twisting a demon's arm behind its back and tossing him against another. Cordelia in the mean time was fighting side by side with Willow, who seemed to work quite well together. Angel in the mean time had gained his second wind seeing the change in the battle and had knocked away one demon already.

"Bloody hell! That's it!" Spike roared getting up fully, adjusting his leather duster. "Everyone on the slayer! You bitch are going down." The demons turned toward Buffy who was now standing back to back with Xander. Xander attacked several attacking demons, while Buffy clonked another over the head with the back of her stake. She turned around to parry one of Spike's punches, then another. She bit her lip, this guy was a lot better than the others, she was starting to get self-doubt again.

Suddenly the demons flew back, or were brought to their knees: one teenager, and a lot of little kids appeared at the same time. The kids started crying almost instantly, many asking for their mothers. The Scoobs wavered for a moment, and then looked clear from their eyes, straightening. Buffy grabbed one of Spike's punches, grinned at him, and said, "Guess what, Spike, you couldn't beat me as a sex slave, what are you gonna do now?"

Spike growled looking at her allies focusing on him. He made a faint with his free fist, and kicked her against the knees. With a yelp at the pain, Buffy let go, and Spike turned around, ran, and jumped up on a stack of wood boards. Lexa tried to go after him, but Spike jumped again, kicking the stack over in front of Lexa, and disappeared through another exit.

"Damn it! He got away!" Lexa cursed angrily.

"He'll get his soon enough," Willow said arriving with the other two. She took in her outfit. Cordelia joined, and so did Angel, holding a slowly coming to Lotion.

"What hit me?" Lotion moaned.

"I did," Cordelia said with a grin, but realized she much rather face Wonder Woman than Lotion so she put the smile away. "It was really necessary, you weren't yourself," Cordelia explained at the glaring Lotion.

"Can you remember anything?" Angel asked them.

Willow, Lexa and Buffy looked at each other. "Yeah, somewhat, hazily," Lexa answered.

"Like being inside but not having control over you're own body," Buffy said, feeling extremely odd about the experience.

"Really weird," Willow added.

"Like large parts of you shut down, one piece brought forth, and enhanced and changed," Lotion added, making the other three look at her, and then look down. "I think I speak English better now," she added with large, blinking eyes.

"Are we going bronzing or what?" Cordelia asked annoyed.

"After we get the kids back to where they belong," Lexa said with a grin.

-----

Giles turned around, and saw Ethan was gone. His voice sounded before he completely left, "See you around, Ripper, you haven't seen the last of me yet."

"Bloody bastard," Giles muttered.

-----

Later in the Bronze

Buffy and Willow - just back from dances with a few guys who had loved to dance with a few harem girls, and some science fiction fans with an Orion slave girl - stood at a table, and watched Xander - male once more - dance with Cordelia and Lotion at the same time.

"So, what did you think?" Willow asked curiously, finally mustering up the courage to ask.

Buffy looked at her, and from behind her cloth asked, "About what?"

"Being a slave girl of course," Willow whispered.

Buffy sighed. "Definitely not for me," Buffy said, and shuddered. "I'd like to take some action on my own, not go 'oh, master' every moment of the day, wanting to please him sexually all the time. And the constant rivalry with the other women; even with you but more friendly, nah."

"Yeah," Willow said looking down. "But . . . well . . ."

Buffy grinned and said, "I know, on the side you were all ferocious and go-getting, all sexy like an Orion woman is, eh?"

Willow blushed, but that was invisible beneath the green paint, and said, "Yeah, but . . . your boyfriend - Xander perhaps - an occasional role play night?" Buffy flushed and looked away. Willow grinned, then rubbed one hand over her green-painted arm and looked at the smeared out paint. "I'm just glad the skin turned back to paint," she said.

Buffy turned back to her, and said with laughter, "Are you ever! I still think you look like an evil smurf!" Willow mock-glared at her friend.


	16. part 16

Buffy, Willow, Lotion and Lexa stood with Buffy's locker. "So, you really dusted him?" Willow wondered.

Buffy nodded and said, "Yeah, I did right after he came above ground. Didn't let him even see me, or me him. Didn't want to find out how that would be. I can't imagine what you guys went through with Jesse."

Both of them looked down, although Willow hadn't really faced the vamped Jesse, Xander, or Lexa at the moment, though only more. "Yeah," Lexa spoke sadly, "Dusting a vamp wearing your friend's body is tough."

"Let's stop the gloom," Lotion spoke quickly. "This is getting too depressing."

They nodded and started walking off. Lexa spoke up, "My class is that way, see you in the library later." Lexa walked off to the left, and a rather hot guy past her by in the opposite direction. Her head turned back, angled down for a moment, and smirked, before returning straight walking on.

Buffy's and Willow's eyes widened in shock at that, as the guy reached them, and Lotion gave him a quick look over. "That . . . can't be, I s-s-saw it this time, I know it," Buffy muttered in shock and then turned to a stunned Willow. "Please tell me I'm going crazy."

Willow shook her head, and muttered, "I saw it too."

"Saw what?" Lotion wondered out loud.

"Lexa - Xander - just checked out that guy's ass," Buffy muttered softly, and in shock.

"That's not possible," Lotion answered coolly. "You must have seen it wrong, she probably had a neck cramp."

"She's right, right?" Buffy asked Willow desperately. "I mean, this is Xander. He chases after girls, he's got the hots for me, he was still interested in girls as Lexa, it's still Xander right? Lexa gay? No guys, Xander not interested?"

Willow blinked as she took in the desperate Buffy, and she said, "So _/that's/_ what I sound like when I babble. Kinda cute."

Buffy took a step forward and grabbed her friend by the collar, "Don't do this to me! Give me an answer! It's not possible for Lexa to be interested in guys, right? Cause it's still Xander, right? Please tell me it was just a neck strain."

"Well, that depends," Willow said.

"Depends on what, and that is _/so/_ not what I want to hear," Buffy desperately told Willow.

"On whether his body just turned into that of a girl, or . . ." Willow frowned a moment considering her words, and she said, "_/he/_ turned _/into/_ a girl, meaning his Y-chromosome turned into an X-chromosome."

"What do you mean?" Lotion asked softly, and Buffy nodded quickly.

Willow shrugged, and said, "Well, if his Y-chromosome turned into an X-chromosome, he's 100 girl, all the way, meaning even the wiring in her brain. Which mean that if he was heterosexually wired as a guy, he'd be heterosexually wired as a girl."

"But, but, can't be, why wasn't he checking out guys much sooner?" Buffy pouted hopefully.

Willow shrugged, and said, "Wiring isn't all that makes a person do things, cultural pressure, peer pressure, his own sense of identity; and there's his consciousness, the non-chemical that was probably still male; but the longer it's routed through heterosexual girl thoughts . . . the more bi-sexual he'll become no doubt."

Lotion looked with wide open mouth, while Buffy went softly, "Ah, ah, no, that can't . . . this just can't . . . oh, no."

Lotion was still looking straight ahead, when Willow asked, "What's wrong with Xander being bisexual." It was obvious a 'me' was in there somewhere, but that was completely lost on Buffy.

The Slayer answered though, "Think about it! Guys would be actual rivals! It's hell enough with three other girls, my best friend included chasing him. What are we going to do once guys get a shot?"

Willow blinked - she hadn't thought of that - and then she said, "Oh, no!" Lotion then fell over unconscious.

-----

Later after school Willow, Lotion and Buffy entered the library. Xander was already present in workout clothes, ready for a training. Giles was obviously present in his library, and Jenny Calendar was present to teach Willow more about magic. "Great, let's get started right away," Xander enthused with a grin, finishing his warmup.

"Uhm, Xan, before we do that . . ." Buffy turned her head to look at the other two girls.

"Uh, yeah," Willow said with not much more confidence. "We'd like to talk to you . . ."

"Tell them it's not true, tell them it isn't! You just had a neck cramp, right!?" Lotion burst out with desperation, charging forward and clinging to a chair for support.

The Librarian, his girlfriend, and Xander looked at the Amazon with wide confused eyes. "What's she talking about?" Xander asked pointing his thumb at the crazy woman.

"Maybe you should sit down, Xander," Willow said, and Xander looked suspiciously at her. "Please, for our sake at least?" Xander shrugged and sat down, while Lotion finally let go of the chair and started pacing the library.

Buffy and Willow sat down themselves, and Willow asked, "Do you remember this afternoon as Lexa?"

"What about it?" Xander asked getting a little testy.

"You kinda checked out a guy's ass, we think," Willow said.

"WHAT!?" Xander exclaimed in shock.

Buffy babbled out, "Please, Xander, tell us you had just neck cramp, right? You just turned your head to get kink out of your neck. That's right, it has to be, it can't be anything else. Right, Xander? Please tell us that."

Everyone looked at her, and then Willow smiled saying, "That really is so cute. Am I that cute when _/I/_ babble?"

"Cuter," Xander answered with a smirk.

Willow turned back to Buffy, and told her, "You are _/so/_ cute." Buffy glared at Willow and let out an involuntary growl. Willow blanched, tried to move a bit further away from the angry super powered girl, but since she was sitting on a chair, she succeeded in tipping it over. With a yelp Willow and the chair went down, only to be caught by Xander just in time - one had at Willow, one had at the chair. He then put her back straight. Willow swallowed heavily, glad the frightening moment was over, only not quite: Buffy was still glaring. "Sorry, Buffy, you're not cute at all, nope, not- . . ."

"GET ON WITH IT!!" Buffy yelled bordering on hysterics, making Willow turn back to Xander in an instant.

"Okay, okay, right, where was I, ah, yes, checking out a guy's ass," Willow said as Giles and Miss Calendar joined to the two girls, and Lotion stepped around the table, stopping her pacing to take in Xander's answer.

"And I repeat: what!? And what makes you think that anyway?" Xander said in annoyance now.

"Uh . . . close your eyes," Willow requested, and after a moment of looking strangely at her, and she looking back - it seemed entire volumes were spoken in those brief moments - Xander complied. "All right, remember back this afternoon, after lunch, we're together and you're about to live, bring it back, imagine being back then there, got it?"

"Yep."

Willow continued, "Okay, so you walk off into the corridor after saying goodbye to us." Xander nodded. "Now a guy comes at you, you notice him just a bit, and he passes you. Then you . . ."

Xander's eyes snapped open, and then he turned white. "Oh, no, nononononono," Xander said in shock. "This can't be, no way, I- . . . AAAAAAHHHH!!!!" Xander jumped up, dumping the chair back, and it clanged to the floor. "Oh, my god, oh godohgodohgodohgod!"

"You had a neck cramp and it hurt?" Lotion asked hopefully. "And now really, really badly?" Everyone looked at her as if she were stupid. "What?" she whimpered.

"No," Xander said and slowly trudged back to the table, absentmindedly picking up the stair. Wide-eyes and jaw dropped he leaned on the table, and muttered. "I can't believe this . . . I really . . . no way . . . how can this be? I really . . . I really . . ."

"Checked out a guy's ass?" Jenny provided with an amused smirk, while Giles was heavily cleaning his glasses.

Xander nodded and let himself defeated fall into his chair. The girls all looked somber, just as defeated, except for Willow, who albeit would have preferred Xander just being into girls wasn't feeling as bad as the other two. "How can this be? I'm a straight guy!" Xander called out loud, feeling horrible, remembering the thoughts that had gone through his female self.

"Actually, you were a girl when you did that," Willow told him.

"But, but, but I'm a guy. A straight guy! Won't change with body, I still liked girls even when a girl, how!?" Xander called out hysterically, hands in the air.

Buffy repeated Willow's explanation with a defeated pout, "If turning into a girl means your Y-chromosome turns into an X-chromosome, which it seems it does, then if you're wired straight as a guy, you're wired straight as a girl."

"And you might always have been bi-sexual, you just didn't know it," Willow added, and everyone looked at her, some with glares. "Yeah, well, you see, it seems that everyone is bi-sexual to an extent, even straight people - if you can't understand at all what is sexy in your own gender, you can't make yourself attractive to the opposite one, you know? And, and . . . well, peer and culture expectations would simply make you focus on your heterosexuality, never really exploring your other side; but now that you're a girl, wired like you more straight than bi . . ."

"How do you know that?" Jenny asked the redhead.

Willow shrugged self-consciously, "I researched it after my bi-sexual awakening."

Xander looked at her with an open mouth, and then let his head fall onto the table. He lifted it up, and dropped it back down, over and over, saying one word with every slight bang, "I. Can. Not. Believe. This." Xander sat up straight, and yelled, "AAAARGGGHH!!!!"

"What's so bad about it?" Willow wondered self-consciously, while Buffy and Lotion just looked forward. Giles turned away, having had enough shocks for a day, while Jenny followed the proceedings amused. "I'm not bad?" Willow added with a pout.

"No, no, but look at me," Xander said indicating Willow, Buffy and Lotion. "And Cordy isn't even here. It's bad enough with me interesting in just girls, what's going to happen if I start showing interest in . . . in . . . I can't say it." Xander then let his head fall to the table, and defeated he muttered, "I'll be dead before I hit eighteen; interested in four girls fighting over me and add guys to it . . . I'll be lucky if I reach the end of the school year."

"Now exaggerating," Lotion called out in concern, worked up enough to fall back to her speech patterns before her Wonder Woman possession. Xander looked up with an adorable sad pout that send the girls' heart rates and mothering instinct soaring through the roof. "We your friends first, we protect, right?" Buffy and Willow nodded with determination.

Xander sighed, and said, "I can't deal with this right now. Crank up the music so hard we can't hear ourselves think, okay? Then we train, and I'll take things one day at a fucking time. Pardon my French."

-----

Outside a man with a goatee, wearing a suit, and holding a silver suitcase. He looked left and right as if expecting someone to jump at him from the bushes at any moment now. He came across a janitor, and he asked with a British accent, "Sir, if I may have a moment, I'm looking for Rupert Giles."

"He's our librarian. In the back, first building on the left," the janitor answered calmly. The man hurried along. "You're welcome," the janitor bit sarcastically.

The Brit walked onward fast, nervously continuing to look around. He recognized 'library' on a sign next to a door when he was about fifteen meters away from it, at which time he also heard a sound. He stopped, and looked around. Finally having turned around fully he could make out a silhouette. "Who are you?" he asked backing up fearfully. The figure let out a grumble, and for a moment its face came into the light, revealing a deformed half decayed female face. "Deirdre?" he asked shocked. The woman laughed and managed to growl at the same time; a heavy unnatural sound. "Oh, my god," the man said, turned around and ran. He reached the library door and jiggled the handle, but it was looked. He looked behind him at the advancing demonic figure, and slammed against the door. Then he pounded on it with his hands, yelling, "HELP! OPEN THE DOOR! SOMEBODY IN THERE! HELP ME!"

"Phillip," the heavy voice of the monster said, and he fearfully turned around. A clawed hand grasped him by the neck, and while pulling him off the floor squeezed.

-----

Inside a very loud techno beat sounded; much too loud to let the man's scream be heard. Xander, Buffy and Lotion were trading blows, while Willow and Jenny sat on the library's counter in a lotus position, deeply focusing on the pen lying in between them.

Giles sat at a table - the stereo producing the music on it - and he was rubbing his head in horror and annoyance. "_/MUST/_ YOU HAVE THIS NOISE ON!" he yelled, trying to come out over the music.

"IT'S NOT NOISE! IT'S MUSIC!" Buffy called out, narrowly avoiding a right cross from Xander.

"I KNOW MUSIC - IT'S GOT NOTES; _/THIS/_ IS NOISE!" Giles called out once more.

"YOU HEARD ME GILES, I DON'T WANT TO BE ABLE TO THINK!!" Xander called back - the answer cost him, since a double coordinated attack from Buffy and Lotion could breach his defenses. He staggered back under the effective assault.

"Wonderful," Giles told himself. "You stay in denial while my brain dribbles out of my ears."

"AND IT'S REALLY GOOD MAGIC TRAINING TOO!" Jenny called out from her position on the counter. "IF WILLOW CAN CONSISTENTLY LIFT THE PEN WITH THIS NOISE: ADRENALINE AND FEAR DURING A BATTLE SHOULDN'T KEEP HER FROM UTILIZING HER MAGIC!"

"WHAT!?" Giles yelled out barely having made out a tiny bit.

"I SAID- LOOK!" Jenny said with pride in her student. Willow too looked with wide proud eyes at her accomplishment: the pen was floating. "YOU REALLY NEED TO- . . ."

Xander turned off the radio and suddenly everything was quiet.

-----

Outside Phillip made a final choke sound as he died. The demon let him drop silently to the ground. The demon than choked and gurgled herself, and dropped right along the Brit. Out of nowhere the demon started dissolving: disintegrating bit by bit into a green-blue see-through goo. The goo then slid over to the dead Phillip and disappeared into the corpse.

-----

"Ah!" Giles sighed out with relief. "And all was silence."

"Yep, training about finished, just a cool down now," Xander said with a smile.

Jenny restarted her cut short sentence, "You still need to be able to do it faster during such hectic times, Willow, and make it consistent, but you're on the right track."

Willow smiled and practically bounced around enthusiastically - making the pen drop back down. Willow payed it no mind, looking back and saying, "Xander, Buffy, you hear that? I'm on the right track."

"We heard will," Buffy answered with a smile.

-----

The next morning

"I'm at the beach, and not an American beach, but those postcard ones where the water is too blue," Buffy said, sitting on a stone bench of Sunnydale High, wearing a skirt and a shirt that was tied around her neck. Her hair was done up in a loose bun, and two strands of hair hung down around her face. The finishing touch was "I'm lying on my back, and then a guy steps in my sun and asks me if I could lotion up his back with sunburn oil. I say okay and then realized it's . . . Brad Pitt."

"Oh, very good, now me," Willow answered with a bright face as she sat across from Buffy. She too was wearing a skirt. It was a loose one, reaching halfway her knees, and her hair was hanging loose and wavy around her face. One strand hung over the right side of her face; not really obscuring her beautiful face, but giving it an extra layer of allure. A dark red wraparound clinging to her body finished her outfit. "I'm sitting in a restaurant, all alone, at a table for two, eating ziti. Then a waiter comes and asks if it's okay to sit two people with me; since one table was double reserved and all the other tables are completely full. I think for a moment and say okay. It turns out to be John Cusack and Catherine Zeta-Jones on a break from filming a new movie!"

"You really have an eye for detail," Buffy said with a smile.

"Yeah, 'cozz, with the ziti," Willow said with wide eyes.

Lexa in tight jeans and tight, low closed blouse, and black sunglasses arrived. As she lowered her sunglasses with a single finger, looking over them, she asked with a smile, "Hey, guys, what'ya doing? And, whoa . . . Will, you look . . ."

Willow blushed just a bit, smiling, and Buffy said, "I told you it was a good hair cut, and wipe away the drool."

Willow blushed bright red and composed herself. "You did," she answered then with a quick grin. After that she answered Xander's first question, "We're playing 'anywhere but here'."

"Oh, cool, let's see," Lexa said thinking for just a moment, and then answered, "Right. In a sauna with Tom Cruise . . . and ew, I can't believe I tried to imagine that? Why did I come up with him!? Tom Cruise is too much a pretty boy."

"Hey, I like Tom Cruise, he's pretty, uh . . ." Buffy shut up realizing Lexa, aka Xander, had mentioned the whole thing.

"Yeah, what happened to your usual," Willow asked Lexa with a smile.

"Ah, well, no matter how much I hate this new bi-sexual nature of mine; I figured I just had to accept it, and try to give it a fair chance, an- . . ."

"YES!!" someone yelled out triumphantly, freezing Lexa in place. "I knew it!" the voice said, and Deke Fisher - yes, him, Sunnydale High's Red Streak Quarter Back - came out from behind a tree behind Lexa. "I knew it!" he yelled more as he came over behind Lexa. "It was only a matter of time before my good looks would sway you, my beautiful Lexa. Deke Fisher, Sunnydale High's Red Streak Quarter Back strikes a- . . ."

That's as far as he came, as Lexa twisted around, and landed a solid punch on the guy's jaw. He instantly shot up, and wobbled already unconscious around. With a blow of air from her mouth, Lexa sent him toppling over backward and then he crumbled to the ground. Lexa then grinned, and turned around looking at her shocked friends. "Perhaps this bi thing ain't so bad after all," she said with a grin.

Buffy and Willow looked up, and the first asked, "Why?"

"Well, this just proves I may have gained a taste for guys, but I haven't lost my good taste," Lexa nodded with satisfaction. "I was afraid I was going to turn into some ditz going all bubbly and large eyed at every popular guy around like most girls."

"We're not," Willow protested feebly.

"You're right, I should never have though that, but . . . eh, nightmares; actually that brings me back to the old trusty: Amy Yipp at the water slide park," Lexa said with a wide grin.

Willow noticed Giles off to the side, and wondered, "Do you think Giles ever played 'anywhere but here' in school?"

"Giles?" Lexa asked in disbelief. "Nah, Giles lived for school. The guy's still bitter there are only twelve grades."

"Yeah," Buffy added with a smiled. She looked up at Lexa, squinting at the sun even with her sunglasses, and then looking from one friend to another she said, "when Giles was sitting in math class, he probably thought, -There could be more math, this could be mathier.-"

"But, don't you guys think he might have gotten restless sometimes?" Willow wondered out loud.

"Are you kidding, his diapers were tweed," Buffy said with a grin, and just then Giles arrived, looking with some concern at the still unconscious quarterback. "Say, is that tweed?"

"Huh?" Giles said looking down at his jacked, and then said, "Ah, yes, it is. How did he go unconscious."

"He slipped on a banana peel, and landed on his chin," Lexa spoke sweetly, smiling at Giles. "Don't worry, I already picked it up and tossed it in the waist bin before someone else tripped over it."

"Ah, good, well done, now come along we have something to discuss," Giles said, and Lexa smiled at Buffy and Willow both of whom grinned back.

Once walking behind Giles ready to enter the school, Lexa took a slower step, pulled Buffy and Willow on either side of her closer together, bent forward a bit, and whispered near their ears, "If I had been a guy, he wouldn't even have believed me, let alone complimented me, and they say this is a man's world." Buffy and Willow gave her a grin, before focusing back on Giles.

"Tonight is an important night," Giles said as they entered the school. They turned left towards the Scoobies' lockers.

"What is it this time, Giles? Apocalypse? Vampire holy day? Preordained death?" Buffy asked, half-joking, half-serious.

"Ah, the old standards," Lexa commented, and Buffy and Willow gave him a smile.

"No, blood delivery at the hospital," Giles answered calmly as they reached the lockers.

"A free all you can eat for vampires," Buffy rephrased with a small scowl.

Giles turned around looking at the Scoobs, and replied, "I hope not. Be there at eight thirty, I'll bring the weapons, don't be late."

"When have I ever disappointed you," Buffy asked sweetly.

Giles angled his head to look intently at Buffy over his glasses, and told her, "Do you want me to answer that? Or should I just glare?" Buffy straightened her back a bit.

"Want some back up, Buff?" Lexa asked coolly.

"It shouldn't be necessary," Giles answered for her. "No hordes of vampires come to it, or people would have goten suspicious a long time ago."

"I can handle a couple, Xa- Lexa, don't worry, training has been good," Buffy told her friend with a grin. The on and off again girl nodded with satisfaction.

"G'Morning, England," Jenny Calendar greeted friendly as she arrived from behind Giles.

"Ah, Jenny," Giles returned suddenly more nervous.

Willow leaned over to Buffy and Giles and said lowly, "Feel the passion."

"Willow?" Jenny asked forcefully.

Willow lightly banged her fist on her present chest, faked coughing - badly - and said, "Coughing, not speaking."

"Are we still on for tomorrow?" Jenny asked Willow.

"What's tomorrow?" Lexa asked, as Buffy was busy with her bag and locker.

"I'm reviewing some computer basic to a couple of students who have fallen behind," Jenny explained. "Willow is helping out for extra credit."

Willow smiled back and up and Lexa, who answered with a laugh, "Those pore slobs, school on Saturday."

"How is nine AM for you, Lexa?" Jenny asked with a smug look. Lexa choked on the juice she was sucking through a straw from a small carton.

"Hey, Lexa, I see some slob on your shoe there," Buffy commented with a teasing grin. Lexa gave her a dark look and a so-not-funny sound.

"Cordelia is going to meet us there," Jenny told him.

"Ooh, here that, extra school plus Cordelia - mix in some rectal surgery and it's my best day _/ever/_," Lexa remarked sarcastically.

Jenny smiled and then turned her head to Giles. "Walk me to class?"

"Pleasure," Giles said and they walked off.

"Look at them," Buffy said with a smile at the retreating backs of Jenny and Giles.

"A twosome of cuteness," Lexa commented with a romantic smile.

Willow smiled too, and commented, "Could you just imagine if they got together?"

The three smiled nodding, then suddenly their faces went sour and quickly walked away, as Lexa said, "Ugh, I'd rather imagine the sauna and Tom Cruise again. One good luck though, Lotion won't be there tomorrow, that would be the death of me - all those- . . ."

"Nihau!"


	17. part 17

"Thanks for letting me borrow the Forrester book," Jenny said with a smile, as she walked next to him in the corridor. "It was so romantic, and filled with this vibrant imagery." 

"Don't mention it, and it is good. It's been my father's for years," Giles answered her a little self-consciously, smiling.

"You know how you have to fold the corners of the pages you like most?" Jenny asked as they rounded the corner. The open door to her classroom was right behind it. "So you can re-read them?"

"Folded the corners?" Giles asked with a weak voice.

Jenny turned around, facing him. Standing in front of the door, Jenny continued, "Yeah, well there were so many this time, I could hardly keep them apart; so I started marking them with different colors."

Giles looked as if he was watching his best friend dying in a car accident, asking, "You marked . . ."

"Yes, but then I spilled coffee over it so I couldn't read it anyway," Jenny added casually.

Giles' eyes were wide, muttering, "It was a first edition."

"Just kidding, Rupert, the book's fine," Jenny said with a smile, pulling said old book from her pile and handed it over.

"Oh, thank god," Giles said with relief, taking the book, and letting himself land against the wall next to door, sighing in relief.

Jenny was smiling brightly, and asked him, "Has anyone ever told you you're kind of a fuddy duddy?"

"I've heard it mentioned a few times, yes," Giles said, looking down a bit in embarrassment.

"Has anyone ever told you you're kind of a sexy fuddy duddy?" Jenny asked with an extremely suggestive smile.

Giles smiled lightly, answering her, "No- . . . no they usually leave that part out. I can't imagine why."

Jenny smirked, and said, "I love it when you squirm."

Giles looked at her from the corner of his eyes, and said, "I trust I gave good squirm. How about we go out tomorrow?"

Jenny took a step closer and said with a husky voice, "I thought we'd stay in." Giles looked at her with wide eyes. "So I can make you really squirm," she finished grinning.

Giles swallowed as he looked in the woman's amazingly sexy eyes. Slowly he bent down. The bell rang, but they didn't notice. They started a gentle kiss. Students passing by made them break apart, and just a little flustered Giles left as Jenny entered her classroom.

-----

He arrived in his library a few moments later, and looked with surprise at two police officers, and an officious-looking, African-American woman in civilian clothes.

"Are you Rupert Giles?" she asked him.

"Uh, yes, yes, that is me. And who are you?" Giles asked.

"I'm homicide detective Winslow, you'll have to come with me," she spoke. The library doors opened emitting Cordelia, wearing a skintight, small, black mini dress.

"Giles," Cordelia whined. "You have to help me get out of this Saturday computer class Miss Calendar demands me to be! I'll do it another day, better yet, I'll prove I can do everything by next Friday - just not nine am on a Saturday! I've got shopping to do!" The police officers and the woman looked astonished at the girl completely ignoring them, and the Brit rubbing the bridge of his nose in frustration. The teen actually had the audacity to casually step in between Giles and the woman, turning her back to the former. It seemed this wasn't an uncommon event.

"Cordelia!" Giles exclaimed with quite some irritation.

"What?" Cordelia asked innocently.

Giles was about to launch in a subtle pointing out she should leave, but realized the American bint most likely wouldn't get it. He could get worked up further afterwards or right away to usher her out, but suddenly an epiphany came to him. "Xander will have to do the makeup class as well," Giles told her, managing not to sound as sneaky as he felt.

"Really?" Cordelia perked up, Giles nodded tiredly. "Oh, never mind then," she added and started to leave again. She stopped and turned around, facing the detective woman, "Now that I'm here and you're here, could you do something about this bogus ticket I've got. It was a- . . ."

**"-Cordelia!-"** Giles said in irritation. "We're rather _/busy/_!"

Cordelia turned around to face the librarian, and said, "You don't have yell, I'm not stupid you know, I can take a hint." Cordelia looked down for a moment, blinked, and then asked, "What's the hint?"

"Leave," Giles said very slowly, as if talking to a four-year-old.

"All right already," Cordelia told him with annoyance, and walked away out of the library, speaking, "I'll tell the rest not to come in here until after you spend some time in decaf-land. Shees."

Giles put his glasses back on, sighed, and asked, "Where were we?"

-----

That night Buffy was perfectly on time with the hospital. In fact she was early, but now it was late, and Giles isn't. She was hiding behind a parked van, looking at the hospital back entrance. "'Should I answer that, or just glare?'" Buffy said in annoyance, doing a really mean impersonation of Giles. "'Don't be late,' he says. 'Do that,' he says. 'Your music is noise, not music,' he says. And where is Mr. Snippy? Not here on time where he's supposed to be at least, that's for sure!"

A van arrived, and a man got out, holding a plastic container. Buffy watched as two doctors came from the hospital and took the blood. They thanked him, and the van drove off. Smiling, Buffy started to turn around, saying to herself, "And the two cute doctors take the blond, a nice happy end- . . . wait, since when do surgeons do menial labor?" She turned back around and watched a red convertible pull up next to the doctors. A vampire got out of it, as one of the two dressed as doctors opened the container. Buffy started running toward them, watching as one vampire started drinking from the bag, and the driver got up on the hood over the windshield.

"Hey," the vampire from the car - the leader it seemed - spoke, "Leave some for the rest of us. We're supposed to take it away, not- . . ."

"Shut up!" Buffy growled, and practically flew with her right leg extended at the vamp. She kicked out over the hood, kicking the legs out from under the leader, and before the other two could react, a stake through the heart turned him to dust. Buffy grinned at the other two, leg still on the hood, and she took a provocative stance. She gave the vamps a flirtatious smile, and told them, "Didn't your mommies ever tell you, it's not nice to steal?"

The vamps, already vamped out, lunged at her with a growl. Buffy turned fully around on one leg, bringing the other off the hood, which she had basically used as a bullfighter's red cloth. Her elbow rammed into the first vampire, slamming against the car, and tumbling on it. She grabbed the second vampire by the collar as he came rushing in, smoothly pulled him off his feet and slammed him on the hood of the car, and partially on the second vamp. Buffy was ready to attack the two and finish it when she felt a presence behind her. She whirled around, wondering where this one could have been hiding. Her stake came up and then she brought it down. "Angel!" she said in surprise, stopping the downward motion of the stake on time - and Angel managed to jump back in time.

"Whoa!" he said, holding up his hands to ward her off.

"What are you doing here?" Buffy asked him in surprise, and then one of the two doctor-vampires slammed his fist in the side of her head. Being distracted by Angel had left her vulnerable, and now she fell over with the unexpected impact. Angel jumped in, and slammed his fist in the vamp's face, and he was launched up and over the windshield then landed in the car's seats with a painful growl. The souled vampire jumped onto the hood, just as the second vamp slid off it. Angel ignored it, going up to finish off his vampire.

Buffy got up smoothly, seeing the second vamp charging her. She took a smooth step forward and landed her fist with all her might into the vamp's gut. To her pleasant surprise the vamp doubled over, and coughed hard, trying to regain his balance. The training she'd been getting from Xander definitely was paying off. With a grin she added an uppercut, making sure it wasn't so hard she'd have to chase after a flying vampire. The monster snapped up with a groan, blood flying from its mouth. With a quick movement Buffy's stake stabbed into the heart, and the monster poofed away into dust.

"Buffy!" Angel warned. Buffy jumped aside as the car drove by, just missing her.

Buffy watched the car, and then turned to Angel. "You let him get away," Buffy accused him, walking over as the souled vampire got up with a little difficulty.

"He surprised me with a brick," Angel told her with a sigh.

Buffy backed off from that thread, and asked him, "Did Giles send you, 'cause he's supposed to be here, but he isn't, and how did you about tonight?"

"It's delivery day. Everyone knows about delivery day. He could just be late," Angel suggested.

Buffy's eyebrows raised in disbelief, and asked, "Giles? The guy who thinks tardiness is like the Eight deadly sin?"

Angel looked at her with widened eyes, replying, "Ah, yeah."

Buffy nodded, and then said, "Can you make sure the good bags get to the hospital? I'll go check on Giles."

-----

Buffy rang the bell a second time, and a disheveled Giles finally opened the door to a crack. He finished putting his glasses on, and said, "Oh, Buffy, why are you here?"

"I was about to ask you the same thing," Buffy said, looking with concern at Giles. Her sensitive nose picked up what had to be alcohol. Giles looked at her. "Hospital? Meals on wheels for vamps? Eight o'clock sharp? Any of this ring a bell to you?"

"Oh, yes, I'm sorry, are you hurt?" Giles asked her absentmindedly.

"No, but- . . ."

Giles cut her off as he started closing the door, "Well, good then." He was about to speak a goodbye when Buffy put her hand against the door. She wanted to talk, but Giles was once more too fast with his tongue for the teen girl. This time he spoke gruffly, impatiently, and very definitely non-Giles, "If you will excuse me, Buffy, I'm trying to do something very important. See you Monday." With a decidedly more loud bang than a smooth closing, the door almost slammed shut. Obviously: Giles was British, even slamming the door he did with a stiff, calm, upper lip. Buffy stood in front of the closed door, blinking. She felt both concern for Giles, as well as hurt that he would treat her so. She left, and eventually the concern marginally won out over the hurt.

Inside Giles finished a phone call, finding out that one Deirdre Paige was dead. He struck her name out on a paper, carrying a few more names: Phillip's (struck out), Thomas Dutch (struck out as well), Himself and Ethan Rayne. Only he and Rayne were not struck out. He gulped down another glass of whisky, went over to a mirror and rolled up a sleeve. He looked hatefully at the tattoo: the same tattoo that Phillip had, the one Giles claimed he didn't know.

-----

Xander groaned as he saw Lotion arriving to their little group of three: Jenny, Willow, and him. Cordelia would undoubtedly arrive a little later, but just on time, to make a dazzling entrance. "Nihau!" Lotion said with a large smile as he and the other two women rounded a corner. Willow, of course, was dressed enticingly these days, and Lotion wasn't one to not wear clothes that accented her curves. Despite being enticing, Willow managed to look smart and respectable and somewhat powerful - the combination was alluring to Xander Harris, and once more he wished he either didn't have all these women attracted to him, or he could just take them all without having to choose. Buffy still held a special place in his heart though - the one girl so . . . He shook his head, it wouldn't do to start remembering that one special, amazing happenstance before everything went to hell. Quite frankly, the blonde Slayer was amazing in the sack, beautiful, sexy, and a great personality - with the exception of that pesky being in love with two- . . . one man and a demon-animated corpse. The corpse part being worse than the more than one part.

"Why, oh why?" Xander muttered in great annoyance - it wasn't that Lotion was a bad person, she was actually quite amazing now that he had let her in. When Spike had attacked, he had even found to his consternation that he managed to qualify her as one of 'his girls' - friends he cared deeply for and would protect with his life. But, and here it was, she _/was/_ always _/extremely/_ present, for once he had hoped to have to deal with only two of the women chasing him, and not all three - four counting Buffy. The latter definitely was more than a little interested in him, Xander knew, but she was also interested in Angel in the same way _/and/_ she knew she was number one with a bullet when it came to the romantic aspect, so she wasn't exactly 'chasing' him, just giving him the occasional reminder that romance was far from out between the two.

Willow grinned at him, and said, "You shouldn't have jinxed it."

As Lotion came to walk next to Xander, Jenny said, "She's from the heartland of China, a tribe so deep away they don't have electricity. If she's even seen a computer before she came to my class, she most certainly hasn't operated one before. She had to learn _/really/_ from scratch, and needs the most help. Quite smart of you to learn about computers - they'll never go away."

Lotion smiled. "I doubt it's smarts, it's who was in it," Willow muttered under her breath.

"I _/heard/_ that!" Lotion bit at Willow, who just turned to face the challenge and glared at Lotion. Xander wisely kept his mouth shut. Lotion then added darkly, "Although it's true - doesn't mean I'm not smart."

Jenny up front reached the door to the computer room and unlocked it, smiling. "Take a seat, and don't argue with the girl who'll teach you, Lotion," Jenny said with a grin going to her desk as the three teens entered behind her.

Lotion told Willow, "Don't dare to teach me wrong."

Willow blinked, was about to protest she wasn't that way, but changed her mind to say, "Thanks for the tip." Lotion glared.

Xander in the meantime plonked himself in a seat, and exchanged a look with Jenny that said, 'See what I have to deal with?' Jenny smiled as he turned on the computer. Xander had taken the time earlier to take in Lotion's form - he _/was/_ still a red-blooded male teen - but it was nothing to prepare him for the next arrival. His eyed opened wide as Cordelia appeared in the doorway, and was certain he heard a cliche, sexy, trumpet sound for a lingerie-wearing girl entering the bedroom somewhere. Cordelia was wearing a black super short mini skirt - loose kind, not the tight ones. It barely covered her ass. Above that was a white, tight, spaghetti-strapped top that was cut deep enough and tight enough to put her breasts on display - to do that the only thing missing was a see-through top. High heels finished her look, and hips swaying she entered the room.

"Good morning, Miss Calendar. Hi, Xander," she singsonged her greeting. "Willow, Lotion," she said with a glare, receiving two in return. Cordelia noticed Willow's new look, and was pissed, but not as pissed as she was at Lotion. The stupid girl was wearing mostly those Chinese / Amazonian clothes. They were hopelessly out of time, so the girl shouldn't be able to look good in them. She should be ridiculed. Her Cordettes did - out of loyalty or fear - but the rest didn't. And no wonder, the buxom Amazon managed to pull it off. She looked amazingly sexy, as well as cute and innocent in them, and tough to top it off. And the addition of more temporary clothing - always mixed with her traditional ones, gave the girl a look that could range from sizzling to cute and back again easily. And it just shouldn't be. Cordelia was pretty certain Xander didn't care that much about image and clothing, but at least Cordelia should have had the satisfaction that Lotion was a laughing stock to the rest of the school.

"All right, everyone, turn on your computers," Jenny said with a smile. "Willow, I think you should focus on helping Cordelia and Lotion, while I help Xander, if they need it, okay?" Willow nodded dutifully.

"Miss Calender," an unexpected voice sounded from the door. Jenny turned around, the others looked up.

"Buff!" Xander called out with a huge grin. "So, are we breaking out of this joint? World coming to an end?" Buffy gave him a smile, while Lotion and Cordelia just looked around. Willow didn't know quite what to say: first she was thinking along the lines of Buffy missed them, when she realized it might be more specifically Xander she was missing - she hoped not.

"Giles didn't show up at the delivery last night, so I went over to check on him, and I . . ." Buffy paused with a frown, ". . . well, I went to his home and found him drunk, and he was really rude to me."

"Giles?" Jenny asked in utter shock. Giles and rude?

"Y-ye-yeah, I knew it," Xander said getting up. "A guy wound as tight as Giles has got to fall apart sooner or later. I've seen it before. My uncle Rory was this perfect pristine accountant by day, and by night; booze, partying and whores. Were there whores?"

Cordelia and Lotion looked shocked at Xander's revelation, while Willow was just mildly so. Rory was actually one of Xander's family members she met and rather liked, although he did have roving eyes. Buffy smiled at Xander, both amused at another insight in his life - this one could be explained both good and bad - as well as hopeful that with Giles that was all it was. And just how bad was that? Both the fact that she hoped that was all it was, and the fact she had too great suspicion there was more. Jenny frowned at Xander, feeling several conflicting emotions burning through her being. For Giles sake, it better not be that - on the other hand, did she want it to be worse? "No whores, Xan," Buffy spoke, and then frowned. "Not that I could see anyhow, the door was never further open than a crack."

Jenny took charge, saying, "Have you noticed anything odd about him lately?"

"She means apart from the usual," Willow chimed in, getting grins from the teens, and a glare from Jenny in answer. Willow shrank behind her computer screen.

"No, nothing unusual," Buffy spoke with a thoughtful look.

"Apart from kissing you yesterday, no," Lotion answered, making everyone look at Jenny, who scowled at the Amazon.

"Nothing," Xander added.

Willow said, "No, he was his usual classical British self."

"Nope," Cordelia answered them, and then added, "Although there were some police officers for him yesterday."

"What!?" multiple voices sounded.

"Yeah, she was a . . . hold on, I know this one," Cordelia replied, frowning, testing words in her mind. "Homocide detective? Is that right?"

"Homicide," Jenny spoke in shock. "Murder."

"Exactly!" Cordelia replied with a big grin.

"And you waited to tell us this until now, why!?" Xander asked her in shock.

Cordelia looked up at him, and spoke indignant, "I didn't think it was important."

"Of course not, because it doesn't involve you," Xander said exasperated and disappointed. "Just when I thought you were improving."

"Hey!" Cordelia said, obviously hurt. "That's not why I didn't- . . ."

Jenny forcefully interrupted, "Buffy, call Giles and ask him, while I try and keep these to apart." Buffy nodded and quickly left, as Xander and Cordelia resumed glaring at each other. Cordelia may have the hots for Xander, but that didn't mean she was going to take an insult lying down.

-----

Buffy entered the library, going for the phone, when she heard something in the back. She frowned, and decided to check it out first. Quickly, but cautiously she walked up the few steps in the back leading to the higher part filled with book cases. She looked left and right in the alleys as she walked all the way to the back. She turned right, and when she was halfway the case it was pushed over. Her super human hearing had alerted her to the attempt a long time ago though, so she easily avoided it as she dashed back to where she came from. She grabbed arm of the figure that had tried to pin her and was making a run for it. When she did so, she called, "Stop!" Her strength made it easier to whirl him around, and she looked with wide eyes at the face set in resignation of being found out. "Hey! You're the guy that sold us the slave girl costumes!" Buffy said, looking at Ethan Rayne, and despite her superior position flushed crimson a bit.

"Yes," Ethan drawled out, and grinned. "You must have fetched a fair price too." A moment later Buffy's fist connect with his chin and his snapped back. He needed to take a step back and steady himself, then felt his painful chin.

"You almost killed us!" Buffy hissed at him.

Ethan then said, "I'm genuinely sorry, can I go now?"

Another fist landed across his chin, and he knew for certain this girl was more than she appeared to be. "No, what are you doing here?" Buffy demanded, folding her arms across her chest. A moment's thought made her add, "Besides trying to kill me and insult me and my friends."

"Uh, snooping around," he just answered.

"Honesty . . . nice touch," Buffy told him with a scowl. "Now tell me, what keeps me from calling the cops and having you locked up."

Ethan grinned like a predator and told her, "You could do that, but then the police would have to arrest Rupert because he's the only one who can answer those pesky questions."

"You know Giles?" Buffy asked him surprised.

"Oh, me and Ripper go way back," Ethan said with an even bigger grin. Buffy glared at him. "Ever heard of the Mark of Eyghon?"

-----

The phone rang for the second time, and finally Giles woke up. He was sitting at his desk and the fumbled for his glasses. Once he put them on, he slowly reached for the phone and picked it up. "Yes?" Giles said, and listened to the other side. "Now Buffy, haven't you understood what I told you yesterday? I will see you on Mon- . . ."

#Heard of the Mark of Eyghon?# Buffy interrupted him, and Giles fell silent, eyes widening.

"Where did you hear that?" he asked in shock.

-----

"I'm standing here with an old friend of yours apparently, Ethan Rayne?" Buffy spoke into the phone behind the library counter.

"Didn't I tell you?" Ethan asked, hands folded across his chest, and smiling superiorly.

#Listen, Buffy. You need to get out of there now, it isn't safe with him,# Giles spoke in hurried tones.

"What's going on, Giles?" Buffy asked ignoring his claim. "You're go- . . ."

There was a crash and a growl, and Phillip Henry, or rather the former Phillip Henry crashed through a door, aiming suddenly at Ethan and Buffy. Buffy went into action immediately. She dropped the horn, jumped over the counter, and blocked a swing from the walking corpse. After that she landed one of her own, making the zombie stagger back.

#Buffy!? Buffy!?# Giles called out, hung up, and unseen by the occupants in the library ran out to get there as fast as possible.

While Buffy fought Phillip, Ethan quickly jumped over the counter as well, and then ran out the library, where Xander and the others just came to check out the loud commotion. "Stop him!" Buffy called as she avoided a swing from the zombie, backing up toward the weapons cage in the side of the library.

On his flight, Ethan saw a watering-can standing on the counter. He grabbed it, and threw it at the advancing young man, who obviously had a set of muscles on him. The can smashed into Xander, and spilled its contents, but that didn't help Ethan one little bit. A moment later two very female hands grabbed his collar, and the owner of those hands lifted him off the floor with a growl. He was easily lifted ten centimeters off the floor, held there and he looked in the beautiful face of Lexa. "Say, weren't you just a guy?" Ethan wondered in surprise. The pissed off girl's eyes twitched, and then she pulled back a fist. The girls following the one holding Ethan were much too late to stop the former to land a solid punch in his gut. "OOF!" he gasped out, doubling over, before the girl grabbed his collar with her punching hand again.

"You little . . ." Lexa hissed, and then recognized him. Meanwhile, Buffy had lured the zombie over to the cage, and as it lunged she ducked aside. The zombie stumbled into the cage, and the Slayer slammed the cage shut and locked it afterwards.

"Hey! You're the one who sold the costumes! You gave me all these nice convenient soldier memories!" Lexa spoke with almost happiness. "Let me thank you!" Everyone looked at the happy girl with wide eyes, including Ethan who he just might get lucky. That changed when Lexa once more held him with only one hand, and pulled her right one back into a fist. The fish smashed across Ethan's face, hard enough to snap his head back and make him moan in pain. "Thank you," Lexa said with a grin. She grabbed him with both hands again, and said with a grin, "Thank you for turning my best friends into sex slaves." Lexa's knee crashed into Ethan's groin and croaked out his pain.

"Xander, I think that's about enough, he can still tell us things," Buffy suggested, and then pointed at a chair she placed in the middle of the library. "Put him on the chair, will you?"

Lexa looked at Buffy, and then smiled, "Sure thing, Buff." She started walking over with a groaning Ethan in hands, and placed him in the chair. "There. Oh, one final thing: thank you for giving Lotion better English," Lexa spoke and smashed one final fist into Ethan's face. The man's head snapped back again, making him wheeze out. Some blood flew from his mouth, and came to dribble from his split lip. Lexa's quick foot on the chair kept Ethan from falling backward. She then looked at Buffy, and the Slayer shrugged and smiled.

"Ooh," Lotion said softly, making Jenny, Willow and Cordelia frown at her. Lotion just shrugged.

"Okay, so," Cordelia spoke up, "we got demon guy in the cage, and creepy, bloody guy on chair, now what?"

Willow and Lotion walked over to the cage, and Willow bent forward a little. "Actually," she said with a frown, "I'm not getting close enough to know for sure, but I think- . . ." The demon zombie lurched forward with a grating sound, and crashed against the cage door. Willow jumped back in surprise, and finished, ". . . I think he's dead."

"Apart from the walking, growling, and trying to kill Buffy parts," Cordelia said with annoyance.

At the same time Lotion leaned forward, and poked the zombie in its left eye with her right index finger. The demon made a gurgling sound that was probably a painful howl, and staggered back, keeping away from the door wearily. "So, we kill it?" Lotion asked, looking over her shoulder from her bent over position.

Both Willow and Lexa took a good look at Lotion's bent over backside, and Buffy rolled her eyes at the scene. She said then, "First we need to know how."

"I could beat it out of him," Lexa said indicating Ethan.

Ethan glared at her and said, "Oh, go ahead, and I won't tell a thing."

"I think we should just wait for Giles, and see what he knows," Jenny spoke up with a little authority. The kids nodded their ascent.

"Well, I'm going to get some warm water first, be right back," Lexa told them all and left the library. A little later Xander returned, and settled in with the others to wait, commenting, "I should be able to turn this switch gender thing on and off, that's one serious drawback."

They didn't have to wait long before Giles burst into the library. Giles took a look around the library, noticing everyone was alright, and then focused on Ethan. "Is everyone alright?" he asked.

"Ripper, so good of you to join us," Ethan remarked dryly, voice slurring a bit because of his split lip.

"Why is he calling him 'Ripper'?" Cordelia asked Lotion.

The amazon shrugged, and said, "Beats me."

At the same time Giles burst forward to Ethan, hissing with an angry grimace, "You lying, cheating, thieving, tossing, rotten bastard." A moment later his fist crashed over Ethan's chin who grunted with the impact. Everyone looked with wide eyes at the decidedly non-Giles, non-British behavior.

"Oh," Cordelia said in revelation.

"I told you to get out of town," Giles almost growled.

"You did, I didn't," Ethan told him with a wide grin. "I paid two month's lease for the shop, isn't up for another month."

"You endanger these fine, young people," Giles started.

"And you don't? You've had the dreams, you knew it was coming. You're still here," Ethan told him with a sickening grin.

"Giles," Buffy spoke up. "We don't have time for this pissing contest. What's going on? What's this Mark of Eyghon? How does the zombie fit into it?"

The zombie seemed not to like being called that - with a growl and a burst of strength it forced the cage door open, and it slammed into Jenny who was standing close by looking rather surprised at this very different side of her boyfriend. Jenny went falling to the floor, slipping into unconsciousness. Chaos ensued; Lotion and Cordelia pulled each other back, Xander pulled Willow back, Giles staggered back, Ethan left his chair, and finally Buffy moved forward and landed a solid punch on the zombie, which staggered back, and then went rigid. Everyone looked as the walking corpse started shuddering and trembling. Icky sounds came from it as it started to dissolve. A part of its stomach burst outward, a green goo sliming down from it. Its head split open, more see-through green slime bubbled out from the wounds. The feet and legs were next, dissolving in a disgusting, and disgusting sounding slime. A puddle of it formed as the corpse went lower and lower, dissolving more and more into the goop. Finally only a slime puddle and clothes were left of the corpse - the edge of the puddle touching Jenny's pinky.

"Jenny," Giles said and quickly went over. She moaned as she came to, and Giles helped her up.

"Ugh, I'm going to spend the rest of my life in therapy," Cordelia muttered with disgust at the slime.

"Was that all?" Lotion asked and everyone looked at her. "What?" They shook their heads, and Xander frowned, looking at Jenny. Something . . . there was something . . . then shook his head, dismissing the notion.

"Oh, no! He got away!" Willow commented pointing at the empty chair. Indeed, with everyone's attentions on the dissolving zombie, Ethan Rayne had made a clean get away.

"I'll get Jenny home," Giles said, ushering a weak Jenny toward the exit.

"Giles, we're not done here. What happened? What happened to it? What's this all about? Who's Ethan? And what's the Mark of Eyghon!?" Buffy exclaimed in annoyance.

"That's private, it's none of your business, stay out of it," Giles bit at his Slayer.

"I don't care for private, and I don't care for 'stay out of it'!" Buffy called out with a little anger. "This thing almost hurt some of my friends, we deserve to know what this is!"

Lotion stepped next to Buffy, and spoke, "I don't like it, but pig-nosed girl is right." The Amazon ignored the glare Buffy sent her way.

"I will bring Jenny home," Giles told them and left.

The girls and boy watched him go. Then Buffy took a step forward, turned around, and said, "All right, if he doesn't want to speak, we'll found out for ourselves what this Mark of Eyghon is."

"Who put you in charge?" Lotion asked Buffy with animosity.

"I'm the Slayer," Buffy pointed out.

"So what?" Lotion asked the blonde with narrowed eyes.

Buffy blinked, and said, "It's what I do."

Lotion answered her with a grin, "That means you kill demons - which I can do better anyway - not give commands, bottle blonde."

Buffy growled at Lotion, "Now listen here, you ribbon-freak . . ."

Before Lotion could get physical, Cordelia stepped in and spoke, "Hey, now, we're in this together . . ."

"What do you think you're going to do?" Buffy taunted the cheerleader angrily. "Do our hair and makeup?"

Things went from bad to worse from there on in, to Xander's and Willow's astonishments. Xander turned his head and looked at his childhood friend, who looked up at him and shrugged pitifully as the three girls continued their verbal assaults on each other. "Guys!" No real answer, except for the continuing bickering and insults. "Girls? . . . YO!" Xander called out, finally getting the three girls' attention. "Thank you, it seems there's an estrogen overload going on around her. No offense, but you seem to be _/this/_ close to tossing tampons at each other."

"Of course not, right?" Buffy said with trepidation.

"Sorry, Buffy, but you three seem to be ready to put on a good catfight show for Xander," Willow said nervously, and then grinned at the perturbed looks of the three girls. "I'm certain he'd get a thrill out of it, but I know Xander, he's more concerned with this Mark of Eyghon thing and if it could hurt any of us."

Cordelia, Buffy and Lotion looked at Xander - an odd mixture of speculation and accusation of his male interests. "Why thank you, Willow," Xander said sarcastically.

"Your welcome, Xan," Willow told him innocently.

"The witch is right," Lotion grumbled, folding her arms across her ample chest. "The four of us all hate each other, I think Xander should be in charge, before we _/do/_ start a catfight."

Buffy seemed to want to protest for a moment, but then deflated. Cordelia didn't mind, and so four girls looked expectantly at Xander. Xander blinked, and opened his mouth, and kept it open for a moment. -Oh, great, what have I got myself into now. Think, Xander, think! What would Giles do? Run away and have a good time with his girlfriend . . . AAAH!-

"Well?" Cordelia prompted impatiently.

"Okay, okay," Xander said with a nervous smile. "First we got to figure out this Eyghon, and Mark of him, it, whatever. Willow?"

"I could check out the net, but I think this is more something for Giles' books," Willow answered him.

"All right," Xander said, nodding. "You go check out his books. Lotion, you help her out." Lotion nodded, and she and Willow walked off to the book cases. Xander thought onward - he was behind with the computer, and so he said, "Buffy, you check out the internet, just in case."

"Okay," Buffy spoke a little subdued.

"I'll go check out Giles files and see if he left something there," Xander decided, and Buffy went off.

Cordelia stepped in front of Xander with a big smile. Xander looked at her. "What about me?" Cordelia asked, and Xander kept looking at her. "Come on, I care about Giles. I want to help. I can help."

Xander blinked and said, "All right, you help me."

-----

Xander and Cordelia came out of Giles office, and Xander looked suspiciously flustered. Add to that a smiling Cordelia, and the three other girls were all narrowing their eyes at the cheerleader captain. "Okay, I just found out Giles has the best and most extensive bill history and notes of everyone - I'm betting the British IRS will give him a medal one of these days - but nothing on Eyghon, or Mark of. Oh, and Giles played the guitar, I even found this picture." Xander held up the picture of a young Giles in a leather jacket holding a guitar.

"That's Giles!?" Buffy exclaimed in shock at the 100 different Rupert Giles. Ripper indeed, if he wasn't Giles- don't go there. Xander nodded at her question and the others looked just as astonished at the picture.

Xander then asked, "Have any of you got something useful?"

"Nothing on the internet," Buffy supplied, now looking through a book herself, Cordelia's and Xander's flushed state put aside for more important stuff.

"I got something on the mark," Willow supplied and leafed back in her book. She'd already told the two girls, but repeated now, "Marks of different demons, Eyghon one of them, the demon itself - and it is a demon - isn't discussed here. It seems that as far back as the Roman empire, and probably further back, ancient sects have summoned demons into themselves. Usually during orgies and bacchanals one person would be temporarily possessed by a demon, and it gave the possessed all kinds of advantages, usually euphoria, bigger sexual highs and stuff like that."

"Giles and orgies is definitely an association I could have lived without," Xander commented with a distasteful face.

"Oh! Oooh! Here it is, Eyghon!" Lotion called out in triumph. With a grin of accomplishment she slammed the book down in the middle of the round table. Those who were on the wrong side of the table walked around so they could see. The book about A4 in size, had one large page decorated with the mark. Next to it was the accompanying text.

"That's not Egyptian!" Willow called out, looking at the drawing, "No wonder I was looking in the wrong books, that's Etruscan. Any . . ."

"Willow," Xander interrupted her dryly, but smiling.

"Oh, sorry, putting geekiness on hold," she said with a self-conscious grin, which Xander returned.

Lotion started reading out loud, "'The Mark of Eyghon. Used to summon the demon Eyghon - also known as the sleep walker - to our world and place him inside a host. The demon can only survive in this world by taking an unconscious host.' There's the orgies bit . . . Ah! 'Once summoned Eyghon can also take possession of the dead, but its demonic energies are too great and will disintegrate the host swiftly.'"

"Zombie turning to puddle of goo, check, I think we've got our demon," Xander commented dryly.

"Oh, 'if the demon does not find another unconscious or dead host, he cannot go on living,'" Lotion finished reading.

"Well, then the demon is gone, isn't it?" Cordelia asked the others with relief. "None of us is dead, right? He couldn't have jumped into any of us?"

"Jenny," Xander said softly.

"She was unconscious," Buffy realized solemnly, everyone else looking stricken..

Xander then spoke out loud in frustration, "Damn it! I knew it! I felt something odd about her, like chi, similar to the zombie. Must have been the demonic energies entering her, but I dismissed it, I thought it was just the what was left of the zombie. Shit!"

-----

"Thank you," Buffy said, and put the phone down. "There's no answer at Miss Calendar's, and Giles phone is disconnected or not functioning."

"All right," Xander said in answer. "You guys keep working on a way to kill Eyghon without hurting Miss Calender. Since I'm the strongest, I should go and check up on Giles."

Before Xander could leave, Buffy grabbed his arms and pleaded heartfelt, and with puppy-dog eyes, "Xan, he's my Watcher, and I think you're better at this research stuff anyway."

After a moment Xander sighed and said, "Okay, go."

"Thank you," Buffy smiled at him, and ran off out the library.

"Wimp," Cordelia accused Xander, who looked at him. "One set of teary eyes and you cave."

Xander looked over to her, and said, "Get back to work, we need to save Miss Calendar."

-----

Giles looked at Jenny. His apartment was lightly lit. She was so beautiful sitting next to him. "Well, I should get you home," he said with a nervous smile.

"_/Or/_ you could take advantage of my weakened stated," Jenny suggested seductively.

"Ah, well, it's not safe around me right now," he said weakly.

"Nothing is safe in this world, Rupert, don't you know that by now?" Jenny asked with a smile and moved closer to Giles.

"I never meant to get you into this," Giles apologized.

Jenny just smiled, and moved onto his lap, straddling him, and told him, "I'm in it now." She leant down sexily and started placing a kiss on his lips.

Rupert had some self control and pushed her back gently. He told her softly, "This isn't right."

Jenny laughed out loud, almost hysterically. "This isn't right," she mocked almost evilly. "You always were weak, Rupert, you should just take what you want," Jenny said, and Giles frowned, slowly starting to realize what happened. Jenny spoke again, her voice rapidly growing into a heavy, eery, demonic voice, "You were never worthy of me." Her head morphed into a green and brown with black spots, scaly one with large pointy ears. Jenny or Eyghon's demonic claws wrapped around Giles' throat as he looked at her in shock. She started squeezing, and said, "What will you do now? Kill your girlfriend?" EyghonJenny grinned evilly as he started choking Giles with the relentless claws.

The door crashed open, revealing Buffy. "Get away from him!" she shouted, stepping into the apartment. Jenny had looked up instantly at the appearance of the Slayer, and growled in annoyance. She let Giles go and jumped over the couch at Buffy. Giles gasped for air and got himself off the couch, staggering to the right side of his living room.

Buffy easily avoided Jenny's first punch, and landed a punch to her gut. Eyghon threw a punch that would have connected a few months earlier, now she neatly twisted aside, and immediately kicked Jenny in the gut. The possessed techno-pagan staggered back, and tumbled backward over the couch, taking the piece of furniture with her. She got back up smoothly and growled at Buffy. She took a glance at Giles sitting against the wall, and Buffy warned, "Don't you dare."

The demonic Jenny laughed, and said, "Three down, two to go." She then ran and crashed through a window to leave.

"Giles!" Buffy then exclaimed going over to the old man. "Come on, we've got to fight this; the guys are already on it."

"I told you to stay out of this!" Giles told her bitterly.

"No, I'm the Slayer remember? We fight these things. It's my duty to do so, got the whole super powers deal going on here," Buffy told him desperately, while he just tried to wave her away.

"My god what have I done," Giles said weakly.

"Giles, you're scaring me," Buffy said weakly, instantly showing she really was just a teenager.

"I'm sorry, Buffy," he said weakly.

"Don't be sorry, be Giles!" Buffy exclaimed with desperation and fear, and he just painfully looked at her. She asked, "What's wrong? We always do this. We research, I slay, and the others are just as much into the actual slaying things these days it seems. This is no different."

"This _/is/_ different," Giles spat out.

"Why?"

Giles sighed in shame, admitting, "Because I _/created/_ it!"

-----

"I was twenty-one," Giles said, the two of them sitting in the couch at his table. "I was studying history at Oxford . . . and the occult by night. I hated it. A tedious grind of everlasting boredom. I dropped out and went to London."

Buffy listened patiently, watching Giles taking a sip from a Scotch. "I fell in with the worst crowd that would have me," he said, giving a bitter smile. "We practiced magics - small stuff for pleasure or gain . . . Until Ethan and I stumbled upon something much bigger."

"Eyghon," Buffy supplied.

Giles took another sip, nodding. "One of us would be put to sleep, and the others summoned him. It was an incredible rush . . ." Giles gave a momentary smile, which faltered when he remembered what he was thinking about. "God, we were such fools."

"You couldn't control it," Buffy surmised.

Giles nodded, finishing another draught of the strong liquid, and explained, "One of us - Randall - couldn't control it. Eyghon swallowed him whole. We tried to exorcize the demon; it killed Randall . . . we killed Randall." He looked nervously at Buffy, who looked back at him without knowing what to say. "We thought we were rid of Eyghon after that, but now its back. It killed the others."

"'Three down, two to go.' It's going after Ethan," Buffy said, getting up. "I better get to him, before it does."

"We," Giles corrected, finishing the drink and getting up.

"Giles, speed is of the essence, and you're barely mobile," Buffy told him with a frown. Giles looked at his drunken state and nodded defeated, sitting back down. Buffy started to leave.

"Buffy," Giles called out. The Slayer turned to him. "I don't know how to kill it without killing Jenny," he told her.

"Don't worry, Xander and the others are on it," Buffy said, giving him a confident smile.

"Xander _/andtheothers/_!?" Giles asked in surprise.

Buffy was nervous. Self-conscious and embarrassedly she explained, "Ah, well, you see Cordelia, Lotion and I . . . uh, our tempers flared and uh . . . we were getting close to becoming intimate with each other's teeth, and . . . well, Willow and Xander stopped us, and we kinda . . . uh . . . decided Xander should be in charge to keep us from . . . eh . . . beating each other into the hospital."

Giles looked at her as if he didn't know whether to cry or laugh - undoubtedly hysterically if he had done so. Then he said, "He's a great fighter, but a . . ."

"He did good, _/is/_ doing good, they'll figure it out," Buffy spoke quickly, and then gestured to the door. He nodded, and she was off.

-----

"Nothing, nothing, nada, nothing," Xander muttered in frustration as he turned pages, skimming the text.

Lotion next to him nodded, acknowledging the same problem, "This sucks."

"The way to kill a demon, chop off its head," Cordelia read out loud, and then took a sip from her glass of water.

Frustrations getting the better of him, Xander spoke, "Oh, that's a brilliant idea. We'll have a headless Miss Calendar walking through the school. Hey, Miss Calendar, want us to smear some sunburn lotion on the top of your neck?"

"Hey, I'm trying to help, there's nothing here, I'm frustrated, give me a break!" Cordelia shouted back at him from her table.

Xander got up pissed, "Give you a break!? I think I've given you a thousand breaks already. I should just toss you out!" Lotion watched as Cordelia got up herself, while Willow tried to continue working.

Cordelia was just as frustrated, and she may be interested in Xander romantically, her very nature made it impossible for her not to respond. "Now listen here, you nincompoop! I don't deserve this kind of abuse! I'm helping out! I'm frustrated we can't find anything! I'm not stupid, or a self-absorbed bitch!"

"Anymore," Lotion supplied with a cheeky grin.

"Right," Cordelia said, and then flicking her eyes to Lotion with annoyance. The slight distraction made her aware of the glass of water she was still holding, and just as Xander started his reply, she tossed the contents in his face.

A wet open-mouth Lexa now stood across from Cordelia. She closed her mouth and it was a miracle steam didn't float up from her. "All right! _/That's/_ IT!" Lexa yelled, in anger. "Girl or no girl, I'm gonna kick your ass!"

**"-QUIET!-"** Xander, Cordelia, and Lotion looked at the suddenly standing and very angry Willow. With her long wavy hair, and her skirt, the suddenly rage-induced confidence made her sexy as hell. She ordered, "You two quit it right this instant! We're here trying to save Jenny's life, and there is no way we're going to do that with you two yelling and smashing each other's brain in! So if you two aren't quiet, and giving me a hundred and ten percent, **-get out of my library-**!" Willow pointed to the exit resolutely.

"We'll be good," Cordelia whimpered.

"Yes, ma'am," Xander said unconsciously channeling private Harris.

Willow nodded with satisfaction and went to sit back down. "Hey," Lotion spoke in confusion, "I thought Xander was in charge, and since when is this _/your/_ library?"

"Are you messing with me," Willow growled at the Amazon, neither of them free of the effects of frustration and stress about not fining one.

"Focus here!" Xander called out, refinding some of his equilibrium. "How do we get Eyghon out of Jenny without killing her?"

"Get it a new corpse to jump in?" Cordelia wondered out loud.

"What? Dig one up out of a cemetery?" Lotion asked her in confusion.

Xander shook his head sadly, "Or lure her in one, but that still won't make it jump bodies. It can only manifest fully in a living body."

"Oh!" Willow exclaimed, and then her face lit up. Gesturing with her hand they should follow her, Willow continued, "Oh, oh, I got it! I got it!" She ran out the library.

"She's good," Xander said with a huge grin, as he and the remaining two girls started following.

"How do you know that? We don't even know what she's got," Lotion questioned him curious.

"We get Angel!" Willow called behind her as they caught up with the redhead.

Cordelia blinked, "Angel!? What can h- . . ."

Her eyes widened then and she turned her head to look at Lotion jogging next to her. Reluctantly both of them admitted to each other, "She _/is/_ good."

-----

Buffy opened the door to Ethan's shop, and found the man in a defensive stance holding a heavy object - a fire extinguisher it seemed. "Ah, it's you," he said, lowering his weapon just a bit - enough to show he wasn't going to attack her right away, but kept it high enough to use defensively right away.

"Ethan," Buffy said surly, walking in.

"Are you here to reel me in, so to speak?" the British man asked her warily.

"No," Buffy spoke taking another step closer. She looked up at him, and said, "I would prefer to let Eyghon take you apart, but if you're dead, Eyghon will come after Giles. Keeping you alive, means keeping him alive."

"I am grateful for your altruism," Ethan commented dryly.

Buffy gave him a quick glare, and then - looking around the barren shop - she asked, "Is there a backdoor to this place?"

"Yes, it's in the back," he told her sarcastically.

"Okay, I think we should go out that way, make sure we can leave that way at least," Buffy said, taking charge.

"Ladies first," Ethan said gesturing to the back. Buffy looked at him suspicious. Ethan offered in explanation, "You know us Brits, we're sticklers for etiquette - we'd pause saving or destroying the world to get our afternoon tea."

Buffy shrugged and walked forward. "We should also- . . ." she started. She stopped talking with a groan as the extinguisher slammed on the back of her head and neck. Completely unprepared for the impact, she slumped into unconsciousness.

"Nighty night," Ethan commented with a smile.

-----

With a light groan Buffy awoke, and frowned. Why was she face down on a stretcher or table? And why were her hands bound wrapped tightly around said rather wide table? The events slammed back into her, and she pulled with her hands. Give someone a long enough lever, a solid place to stand on and he'll move the world also works the other way. Someone may be strong enough to actually move the world all on his own, but if he or she can't get the leverage, the world won't budge a millimeter, no matter how hard he or she tried. So too with rope. Buffy quickly found there was no way for her to tear the rope apart. Trying to reach the knot proved futile too as she found the man responsible with her eyes.

"Ah, good of you to wake up," the Brit spoke with a smile as he wheeled over a cart with ink - tattoo ink.

"Ethan," Buffy spoke with a little fear, moving her hands and rope below the table up and down, left and right. "It isn't safe here, I can protect you, you let me go."

"No, you protecting me, is why you're there," Ethan said, firing up the tattoo needle, "you my dear, are going to take Eyghon off my back." He moved his needle over to her neck, much to Buffy's apprehension as well as relief. It didn't seem he was going to kill her. "Now hold still, you don't want me to accidentally harm you, do you?" Buffy gritted her teeth as Ethan prepared to tattoo her with something. Her eyes widened a moment when the rope snagged onto something, it felt like a nail or something. Quickly she started to slide the rope forcefully along its edge. "Oh, and don't worry, this will only hurt a bit, just until the fiery agony will kick in," Ethan said with an evil smile.

-----

"There, done," Ethan said, with a smile. He looked down at his handy work, while Buffy continued to shave the rope along the nail, having had to force back crying at indeed, agony. "I was never much of an artist, but it looks pretty good even if I do say so myself."

-----

Giles' eyes widened at the sudden flash in his mind. He half fell to the ground, seeing flashes of Buffy tied to the table; the mark of Eyghon tattooed on the back of her neck. A similar vision to the dreams and visions he'd been plagued with for a while. "Buffy," he said shocked. "No!"

"Ethan," he then growled. He got up, and went out the door.

-----

Buffy watched as Ethan casually put the needle away, and then grabbed a bottle with a liquid. She just managed to make out HCl on the label. Buffy wasn't too good at chemistry, but she new HCL: hydrochloride acid. Her eyes widened with fear, and she started moving the rope along the nail much faster.

"Oh, don't worry, this isn't for you, it's for me," Ethan said as he rolled up his sleeve revealing quite muscular arms. And why the hell did she focus on that? Stupid Slayer hormones! Ethan uncorked the bottle, and brought it closer to his arm - to his tattoo. He took a deep breath, and then placed the mouth of the bottle on his skin, tipping it over. "NNGGhh!" he groaned as the acid started burning away the upper layer of his skin, and with it: the Mark of Eyghon.

It took Ethan about fifteen seconds to move the acid over every part of the tattoo and remove it completely. When he did, he breathed a sigh of relief and put the bottle back with the rest. Then he got out some bandages and started bandaging the wound he gave himself. When he was done with that, he said, "I hate to mutilate and run, but goodbye anyway. Have fun with the demon." He then started to leave, but stopped in his tracks halfway to the front door. There was an eery silence, an eery green glow coming through the front windows and door, and an equally eery and chilling sensation in the air. A moment later there was a silhouette in the door window, one that promptly opened the door.

A demonic Jenny walked in grinning. "Ethan, it's time," Eyghon spoke with a heavy voice. She hesitated, sniffed the air, and switched her gaze to Buffy, and then her deadly smile returned. She pushed Ethan aside and advanced on Buffy, who just finished sawing through the rope. It split apart, and she got off the table. She slammed her fist into Eyghon's chest and the demonic being staggered a few steps back. She kicked out, but Eyghon blocked it, and then slammed a fist across her left cheek. Buffy staggered back as well, and tumbled over the table, which Eyghon picked up. Buffy shook her head to clear it and got up, kicking out, but hitting the table instead of the demon. Eyghon then charged forward, pushing Buffy along and slamming her against the wall, and the table against her. The Slayer groaned out, slumping down a bit as Eyghon tossed the table aside.

Giles chose that moment to enter the shop. "No! Eyghon! Take me instead!" he called out seeing what was happening, and Eyghon slowly turned around regarding Giles.

Eyghon smiled, and decided Giles was a tastier morsel. He walked over. Buffy was back up, and yelled, "NO!" She then quickly ran in between Eyghon and Giles, and she said, "No further."

Eyghon just waved Jenny's hand and Buffy was pushed aside, launched off her feet by some invisible force. With a growl she punched Giles in the gut, and tossed him over. Eyghon was standing over Giles and was about to strike when the door opened, the bell sounding again. "Hey, she-bitch!" Lexa called out, bringing Eyghon's attention to her and Lotion who came in with her. Eyghon sneered.

"Yeah, you, with the ugly face," Lotion added with a deadly smirk.

Eyghon growled and turned around as Lexa and Lotion advanced. Eyghon used two hands now, one on either teen, just like he used it on Buffy earlier. To the demon's surprise it was as if pushing the two with his hands and they were able to push back, keeping from being launched off their feet. Then two feet kicked out landing squarely on Eyghon's chest and he staggered back.

The door to the shop opened again, and Angel came in. "Well, hop to it, Vampire Guy, do your worst, we don't have all night," Lexa told him, pointing at Eyghon with his thumb. The souled vampire gave Lexa a quick annoyed look and then charged forward. He punched Eyghon in the gut, and then grabbed him turning him around. As an out of breath Willow and Cordelia entered, Angel grabbed Eyghon by Jenny's neck, and started squeezing.

Lexa went to help Buffy up, even as Willow went to Giles who said in panic and anger, "He's killing him."

"No, trust me," Willow quickly said, "this will work."

Jenny's body was starting to run out of air, and then the demonic visage on her face disappeared. She jerked back, as Angel did the same. His hands left her throat, and instinctively she sucked in air. Giles came over holding her, as Angel jerked further back. Some ethereal growls, not coming from Angel's mouth came from him. He jerked back and forward, while he looked on with wide eyes and gasped on occasion. Inside him the growls continued, as he went further rigid, his chest showed something trying to pull it apart. His face momentarily changed to that of Eyghon, then it disappeared again. Several more growls and jerks later, he went quiet and sank to the floor on his ass.

Buffy quickly went over, as did Willow. Buffy then looked at Willow and said, "You knew that if Eyghon was in trouble, he would jump to the nearest dead body."

"And it jumped," Angel said, while catching his breath. He slowly got up, helped by Buffy, and he added, "the demon inside me hasn't had a good fight in a century, he was just itching for one."

"Winner and still champion," Buffy said with a little pride, as Lexa looked at the scene with annoyance.

Giles took Jenny along in a hug toward the exit. Lotion blinked looking around the shop, and said, "Uh, Ethan-guy got away again, I think."

"Damn," Lexa pouted, tapping her foot. "And I was looking forward to beating him into the hospital too."

"Harsh," Buffy replied, smiling. "I was only going for blood."

"That's me, no mercy," Lexa added with a grin.

Lotion blinked, and said, "You two would make good Amazons." Buffy, Cordelia, and Willow scowled at the Amazon.

Cordelia lighted up, and said, "Well at least it's over. It is over, right?"

-----

Sunnydale Highschool

Monday

The three of them walked across the school grounds. The Scooby Gang, minus one, the Three Musketeers: amazing friends. Three girls all, all three wearing skirts. "Did you guys hear me? 'Hey, she-bitch.' I've always wanted to say that," Lexa spoke with a huge grin.

Buffy and Willow smiled large smiles. It had to be the thousandth time they had heard it over the past day and the night before, but they still couldn't keep their smiles of their faces. "That's like what? The millionth time you said that?" Unfortunately for Lexa, the same could not be said for the queen of Sunnydale High who just arrived. Unfortunately for Willow and Buffy, although Cordelia rolled her eyes, she wasn't speaking with a dismissing tone.

"What do you want, Cordelia?" Willow told the cheerleader with a glare.

"I can't say 'hi' to a friend?" Cordelia said indicating the only person who could contest Cordelia's title of 'Queen'.

"You didn't say 'hi'," Buffy pointed out with folded arms.

"Hi," Cordelia greeted Lexa with a smile, who grinned at her.

Willow then said, rather rudely, "Now you said 'hi'."

Cordelia rolled her eyes, turned to walk away, and as she did so, told Willow dismissively, "Pissy." As Cordelia walked off, Willow looked perturbed.

"I wasn't pissy, was I?" Willow asked uncertain.

"I bit more with the piss, than with the 'y'," Lexa told her with a smile.

Buffy nodded, and told Willow, "Sorry, Will."

-----

"Jenny," Giles said, slowing the other teacher down. Jenny walked over to the stairs, and Giles slid next to her, students walking around them in the halls. "I-I wanted to ask how you were."

Jenny stepped onto the stairs and turned around. "Good," she answered him, and then made a not-quite gesture with her mouth and head. "Well, not hair-in-the-wind-sound-of-music-in-the-mountains- good, but I'm coping."

"Ah, yes, I wanted to tell you I would like to help . . . with the coping," Giles replied nervously. "W-we could talk, if you want?"

Jenny thought it over, and said, "Yeah, that would be great, sometime."

Giles smiled weakly and reached over to her. Jenny flinched back, folded her arms defensively over her chest, and repeated, "Sometime." She then turned to her left and continued up the stairs.

Giles watched her go, and then turned away, walking onward. He found Buffy there, waiting, and she asked, "How is it?"

"Music doesn't sound in the mountains," Giles answered her.

Buffy smiled weakly, telling him, "Don't know what it means, but it doesn't sound good."

"She might never forgive me. I don't know if she should," Giles told Buffy sadly as they walked onward.

The Slayer turned around, and stopped. "Perhaps you should," she told him.

Giles looked down, giving her a weak smile. "And you?, I'm sorry you had to witness me like that," Giles said guiltily, leaning back against a wall. Buffy did the same next to him.

Buffy grinned warily, and said, "Good, a little less at first. I must admit, seeing that side of you scared me at first. You are always . . . such an adult, and now I find out you're a person."

"Yes, most adults are," Giles answered wryly. "Some are even shortsighted foolish ones."

Buffy smiled at up at him, stood away from the wall, and said, "At least we've learned something: we have at least that in common." Giles smiled again. She then pulled out a CD and said, "You know I think the others are ready to be training again. I brought this music in case Xander doesn't want to think yet." Giles eyebrows raised, and Buffy smiled. "Come one, you know you want to say it, it will make you feel better."

"That's not music, it's meaningless sounds," Giles said half for real, half dryly.

"See, that's the spirit," she said and turned around. Giles followed her.

"The Bay City Rollers, now that's music," he said as he pushed open a door, Buffy easily walking underneath his arm, groaning.

To Be Continued . . .

Author's Notes:

Sorry it took so long. It just refused to come out, same thing with Buffy Z the next episode I'll be focusing on now. Took a week this thing, and I know it isn't so good, TOO much like the episode. Anyway, the next double episode I'll use as well, except that I'm going to make it VERY different, just a few basic events should stay the same. After that, there would be only one episode left of which would mostly stay the same, and then it's all new stuff, with the exception of a few snippets here and there. I hope you guys like it anyway!


	18. part 18

Title:

1/2 Blessing, 1/2 Curse - Season 1 - 18?

Author:

3D Master

Feedback:

3d.masterchello.nl

Website:

http/members.chello.nl/jg.temolder1/

Rating:

PG-13

Keywords:

X-Over Ranma ½ / Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Action, Humor, Drama, AU.

Summary:

Xander and Willow go out on their first date; and Deo decides it's time to test Willow's mettle, meanwhile Spike is hiring . . .

Disclaimer:

Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its characters do not belong to me, but Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy Productions. Ranma ½ belongs to Rumiko Takahashi.

Willow came walking into the school with a smile. She read a big sign saying, 'Career Fair begins tomorrow.' Willow half-shrugged; although interested she had bigger things to worry about. Tonight, she would finally get her first date with Xander, and her chance to impress him enough he no longer had eyes for the skanks after him - Buffy excluded, although she good be skanky from time to time she admitted. To that end Willow had decided to dress to impress early on to raise expectations: a tight, dark-green shirt that accentuated her breasts making them look more prominent, her hair hung wavily around her head and face, a light but obvious makeup adorned her face - lips pink, a red, short, wavy skirt showed off her legs and ass, short black boots with a mid-heel and to finish it, black pantyhose that accentuated her legs even more. Thank god for Buffy's help in the fashion department Willow breathed relieved. She became aware of a guy checking her out, and then a second one. Willow blushed and looked down nervously, gingerly grabbing the shoulder straps of her backpack. Despite her newfound confidence, anger induced super-sexy Halloween costume, and another boost of confidence from the feral Orion persona she turned into that night, it still jarred her when a guy looked at her like that - partially wondering whether she had spinach beneath her teeth or something like that. She had had that small a low self-esteem that even her new boosts hadn't fully eradicated her view of herself.

She quickly walked on and found a desk with career tests. She checked off her name to indicate she had gotten one and the woman gave her the test. She walked onward and saw Buffy and Xander sitting at a table filling in their own tests. "_Do you like to work with animals, tools, or machines?_" Xander quoted from his taste. "What have 'animals' got to do with tools or machines? Have you ever heard someone say, 'I love animals, and machines too, especially meat grinder.'"

"Butchers," Willow offered sitting down at a vacant seat. Xander scowled at her. Willow grinned, "Sorry, you look glum."

"It's just this stupid test; nobody can find out what you're going to be and what you like by filling in ten stupid questions," Xander muttered in annoyance. "Here, look at this, _Would you like to work as a teacher? _ I thought this dumb test was supposed figure this stuff out for you." Xander sulked, and Willow almost casually filled in her paper.

"Do I like shrimp?" Buffy asked as she looked up from her paper with a confused frown.

Xander grinned at her and said, "Well, I could demonstrate the use of a shrimp once again . . ."

Buffy couldn't help a small smirk as she told him, "Mind out of the gutter, Xander."

"But it likes it there," Xander retorted with a cute whine.

Willow quickly interrupted, saying, "I like shrimp, lots of shrimp, will try out new ones." Willow blushed as Xander shot her a dirty smile.

Buffy sighed, saying, "All right, dirty minds prevail, like the shrimpage." She forced her mouth in a twisted shape, attempting to not smile, and only half succeeding as she checked her option.

"Hmm," Xander said, smirking, "that way filling this thing in might be fun after all. _Do you have skill working with animals, tools and machines? _ Oh, yeah, _very true_, I keep this one in my night stand, anduh . . ."

Buffy couldn't help but laugh out loud, which destroyed Willow's try at keeping from laughing, making her explode out a spluttering laugh and go red immediately when people looked over at them. "Xander," Willow admonished him. Buffy looked sullenly back down at her test. "What's the matter?" Willow asked her friend.

"I don't even know why I bother with this?" Buffy spoke annoyed.

Willow shrugged, and said, "Then don't."

Her two friends looked at her, and Buffy observed, "Wow, living on the edge, Will."

Willow blushed deeply, and gave as an explanation, "Xander and I are going on a date tonight . . . we're going on a date right?" Buffy actually smiled at Willow's uncertain look, while Xander looked oddly at her. Willow nodded satisfactorily and said, "Just checking I hadn't dreamt it. Makes everything else seem . . . bland." Willow thought for a moment and then asked Buffy, "So you don't have any interest at all in what this test says? I must admit I'm a little curious despite."

"What's the use?" Buffy asked glumly, sitting back down in her chair like a lost bag of potatoes. "My fate is already sealed. Unless hell freezes over and all the vampires retire; live fast, die you is the motto for this girl."

"Hey!" Xander said brightly, and then lower so nobody heard, "At least look at the bright side. You die young, we die young right along with you." Buffy and Willow looked at him perplexed. "Uh, wait," Xander said going over his words, "that came out wrong."

-----

The bearded vamped-out vampire with glasses sat reading words from a book in the old rundown factory out loud. On the other end of the rectangular table sat Drusilla, playing with tarot cards.

Next to the male vampire stood Spike, reading another book, and translated testily, "The beef, debase, canoe. Somehow that strikes me as not right."

"I, well . . ." Dalton muttered.

Spike slammed his closed book on Dalton's head who desperately tried to defend himself. "What is wrong with you?"

"It doesn't make sense," Dalton whimpered out his defense.

"Spoik, wanna play?" Drusilla whimpered lowly from her position.

Spike snapped his head to her and said, "Shut up, Dru! Can't you see I'm bloody working here?" Drusilla recoiled with a hurt look. Spike immediately felt sorry, and said so as he walked over, "Oh, I'm sorry, baby, you know I didn't mean it like that." He took Drusilla in his arms who placed her head against his chest. "It's just that that damn book has even Dalton trumped, and he's supposed to be the big brain around here," Spike cursed in frustration, making Drusilla whimper some. "I'm sorry, baby, I'm sorry," Spike soothed her again, sitting down on the table. "Soon you'll be to your full health again, and then we'll paint the town red, we will. Together we're unstoppable, my luv . . ."

Spike let Drusilla abruptly go, and as he stalked back to Dalton his hissed, "Just as soon as brainiac here deciphers the bloody book. Talk to me!"

"I'm sorry!" Dalton quickly exclaimed. "It's Latin, but it isn't Latin, I'm not even sure it's a language."

Spike grabbed the vampire by his collar and lifted him off the floor saying, "Well, then _/turn/_ it into a language! You're a transcriber! That's what transcribers _/do/_ isn't it?"

"N-not exactly," Dalton whimpered.

Just as Spike was to go on, Drusilla from her position by the cards muttered, "Pain."

Spike turned to her, grinned, and then said, "Why not? Pain is a good motivator." He need Dalton into the groin, who groaned out in pain.

"He can't help it," Drusilla added smoothly.

"What?" Spike asked her surprised.

Drusilla smiled just a bit as she indicated the cards, "He doesn't have the key."

"Key?" Spike blurted out, pushing a still in pain Dalton back on his chair. "You mean this book is in some bloody code?" Spike growled, "Well, where do we find the damn key then?"

"Right here," Drusilla said pointing her finger at a card depicting a crude tomb or mausoleum. Spike looked at the card, and grinned.

-----

Lotion sat sulking in the living room of her and her mother's home, right above the Chinese restaurant they ran. "What's wrong, my daughter?" Deo asked her finally.

Lotion looked up, and then said, "Oh, uh, the red witch succeeded in getting a date with future husband. She is out with him now."

"Hmm," Deo said with a sneaky smile, her blue eyes glittering, "I think I'll go test some mettle again."

"No!" Lotion said defiantly standing up. "You already tested Xander!"

Deo nodded, and said, "Yes, but now I'll test the witch's mettle - it's time to weed out some rivals anyway."

"But . . . Willow is kind of nice," Lotion admitted with a slight frown. Her mother just grinned wider. "Mother! Don't!" Deo took off. "Mother!" Lotion yelled as she ran after her.

-----

Xander and Willow laughed at the big movie screen. Having taken a lovers' seat, Willow was happy. She watched Xander who had his left arm around her shoulder scarf down some popcorn, and smiled. "I wish I had had the guts to ask you sooner, to show I'm a girl too," she said wistfully, imagining for a moment how that would have been.

Xander left the movie and the snacks for a moment, and took Willow in. "Things have gotten complicated, huh?" Xander said with a wondering expression.

"Yeah," Willow said, snuggling closer to Xander.

"You still miss Jesse?" Xander asked softly.

Willow nodded placing her head to his chest, and said, "Every day."

"You're actually kind of beautiful," Xander complimented her, cursing himself for his good luck packaged as bad luck. He had amazons around him, super models, and he had certain things for them all, but the one that he really wanted, and had had for a single event of absolute heaven was the most complicated of all - were they / were they not? He hated it. Willow looked up at him with raised eyebrows. "Ah, well . . . what are you going to do if I don't choose you?" Xander asked, both of them knowing that was a highly likely scenario - four suitors that meant 25 right there, and Willow had no intention of multiplying that by all the other factors diminishing, and few select others increasing her chances.

"I'll move on," Willow said, sadly introspective, "hope I fall in love with someone as great as you . . . and if he's a guy booking a vacation to Jusenkyo and hope for just as good boobs as Lexa." She added the last part with a sneaky grin and a blush.

"Willow!" Xander whispered in exclaim a few people around him shushing him with characteristic hisses. "You're evil," he told her much more softly, smiling.

Xander's eyes involuntarily drew down to Willow's chest. He felt one of her breasts press against his chest, while the blue shirt with cleavage opened up just a bit to show parts of the others. Willow noticed him stealing a look, and grinned, thanking Buffy silently. It was amazing she figured, that the two were actually helping the other land the man they wanted. In return she had even given Buffy some pointers on Xander's likes and dislikes that only she knew about. There used to be a second person that knew them, but . . . Anyway, part of her had wanted to bash her own head in doing that, undoubtedly part of Buffy wanted to do the same. Were the two friends stacking the deck in their favor instead of Lotion and Cordelia? Probably. Willow gave Xander a grin at her notice and said, "Definitely wish I had worn this stuff sooner."

Xander blanched, actually blushed and turned his head away. "I, uh . . ." he whispered.

"What were you thinking?" Willow asked him, moving her leg onto his and her lips to his ear so she could be even softer for fear of upsetting the other moviegoers again.

Willow watched Xander grow red, and loved that she actually managed to do that, usually it was her that was red. "Wondering if they were real," Xander answered, wanting to slam his head in the backrest of the seat before him. Damn, he still hadn't learned to keep his big mouth shut!

"All real," Willow whispered with a smirk, as Xander couldn't keep himself from taking another glans. "No padding, no magical surgery, no glamour - pushup bra though. Good enough?"

Xander gulped, nodding. "Sorry, didn't ruin the night, did I? Forgive me?" he managed looking into Willow's glittering eyes.

"Of course," Willow whispered right away, feeling herself growing a little warm throughout. Xander looked down at her sharply, looking directly in her eyes - she had said that _/far/_ too quickly; despite Xander's low experience with women, he knew they didn't let a man off the hook that easily. Willow gulped, and confessed, "I kind of was wondering the same about yours . . ." Xander frowned at her - his? Willow added, ". . . before I saw you coming out of a pond with your clothes half see-through clinging to them."

Oh! _ /Hers/_! His female alter ego's. "All real," Xander repeated his friend's earlier answer. He looked back at her, and asked, "No cute Willow blush?"

Willow entangled herself a little, resting her head back on his arm, and said, "It's weird; but now that the ice is broken, I feel this going just like when we're friends - trust each other with everything - now even girl stuff." Xander snickered down at her, remembering some stupid things he and Jesse had said about Willow's girl parts and their functioning.

**"-SSSSSSHHHH!-"** sounded suddenly loudly from multiple sources, and the two of them quickly jerked straighter in their seats, raising their arms in a disarming gesture and contorting their faces in a apologetic one.

-----

Xander and Willow walked along, arm in arm. They were best friends since childhood, potentially more. The potentially more was what Willow was hoping for. The result was an odd mixture of familiarity, slight awkwardness and a little sexual tension. The last was more to Willow than to Xander. He had been hot before, but now feeling his muscular arm around her, and imagining that amazing . . . better not go there. He hadn't exactly been not muscular, but both his leaning out and his better choice of wardrobe had had a profound effect that Willow both blessed and cursed. On the one hand, a hot Xander was now positively sizzling in two genders, on the other hand it made him a prime target for the romantic advances of three more girls. Of course, new Xander with new confidence also helped Willow get the confidence to finally do something about her own feelings; so as far as she was concerned it was a good thing - from no chance, to a small chance was still an improvement.

The world of Sunnydale was dark and foreboding as the two teens walked along, and casually chatted with each other - about things they usually talked about, and about things they never talked about before: feelings, possibilities, hopes, and dreams. Some of them passed the revue normally, but other dreams didn't. Despite the fact that no Slayer was around, neither was particularly worried about the things lurking in the dark; in fact, it would be better for the vampires not to interrupt this twosome.

"So you have no idea what you want to be later?" Willow asked him carefully.

Xander looked up into the starry sky, thinking for a few moments. He shook his head, and said, "No, got no real idea. Stocking the supermarket is definitely not something I want to do for the rest of my life though. I could always start a dojo, I'll bet I can become a great teacher, especially if I fight a few tournaments and show off what I can do . . . I mean, I manage to teach you, and the others quite well, right?"

"Yeah, I guess . . . Ooh, if you manage a world wide chain you could become a millionaire," Willow fantasized with him.

"Xander Harris School of Anything Goes Martial arts, millionaire entrepreneur, and world champion . . ." Xander was still looking up, then looked down and said, "I kind of like the sound of that."

Willow grinned and added, "I'll be your lawyer for free, whether I'm yours or not." Xander smiled. -NOW!- she screamed mentally at herself, fighting her insecurities. -Now or not at all!- Mustering all the courage she'd ever had, dredging it from her short time fighting the scary things in the world - none coming anywhere close to this moment - she moved forward, and stood up on her toes and kissed Xander full on the lips, before he could withdraw. Perhaps it wasn't such a good idea, because now what now that her lips were pressed against his. To her own surprise her tongue moved up, kissing Buffy to prove her point at Halloween suddenly overlaying the present. She closed her eyes and let her tongue slip against his upper lip, lingered her kiss there and then pulled back, opening here eyes in astonishment at her bravado, looking straight into Xander's equally surprised face. Willow swallowed away the lump in her throat audibly, and offered nervously as explanation, "Before you choose, I wanted to have done that, wanted you to know my kiss."

Xander gulped his own surprise away: Willow was a good kisser for sure. He smiled, pulled her closer and then planted a kiss on her himself - right smack on her forehead, much to Willow's disappointment as well as delight. "I love you, you know that'll never change right?" Xander asked her, not knowing why the hell he had to dredge up all those loaded subjects once again; the movie theater should have been enough.

Willow nodded with a grin, "Of course, Xan, and I love you too; whatever ups and downs, or things that will or won't happen; our friendship won't ever break." She saw Xander surprisingly perk up even more that he already was. She knew Xander better than anyone else, and knew something had just happened, something she couldn't quite place, something inside Xander. She vowed she'd pay extra attention to him to figure it out; for she knew Xander would never come right out and say it, not even to her - his parents had burned him too much for that.

The vampires and the creatures of the dark were smart this night, and kept out of their way. Unfortunately for Xander and Willow, a creature of the day that was a hundred times more dangerous than anything the night could throw at them had other plans. "Willow! Xander!" a seemingly soft voice yelled from afar.

The two of them turned to their right and saw Deo land on the roof of the building now directly in front of them. Then she jumped forward and landed on the asphalt right before them. An evil smile adorned her face, and Xander immediately went in a battle stance, as several animal creatures of the night behind them in the cemetery scurried away.

"What do _/you/_ want _/this/_ time?" Xander said angrily, pissed that someone would interrupt his date.

"Yeah," Willow agreed, taking a step away from Xander to give him room, and the same for herself, going in a fight stance.

Deo grinned evilly and said, "To test some more mettle."

Lotion landed behind her mother, and looked stricken at the scene. "Xander, Willow - flee!"

Xander and Willow stood their ground though, "You bring it on, you Amazon bitch. I'm not afraid of you."

"I'm not going to let you hurt Xander again," Willow said with finality, gathering up her magic; trying to think of a way to keep the Amazon away from Xander with the limited things Jenny had taught her so far - she was still very careful with the whole magic abuse possibility.

"Oh," Deo started with a smile, her blue eyes glittering with enjoyment, "but I didn't come to test Xander's mettle, he's tested for now, I came to test yours."

"Mess with me, fine!" Xander hissed and then surged forward with everything he had. "But you leave my friends out of this, bitch!" Xander threw a punch that Deo easily blocked, and then ducked underneath his follow up.

With a quick kick backwards to Xander's back, he was launched off his feet, this while Deo said, "Sure, she gives up her claim to you, and I'll deal with you alone." Deo moved forward, as Xander crashed painfully against a wall and Lotion came to check up on him.

Willow's eyes were already wide with shock at Deo's revelation, and were more so now that she came charging at her. Willow tried to block Deo's hit, but was far too slow. Deo easily moved aside, and poked Willow's side with the tip of two fingers. Willow's eyes widened as she felt a small bust of energy enter her body there. She tried twisting away, but Deo just circled her a bit forward and did the same in a place on Willow's back. There was a third, a fourth, and finally a fifth poke, and Willow groaned, as she staggered about.

She felt woozy, and heard Xander scream with frustration. Then a female grunt of pain, and refocusing her eyes, Willow saw Deo fly through the air till she landed on her feet after making a somersault. Willow felt her balance return, and her head clear, even as her body heated up inside rapidly. "Stay the hell away from her," Xander angrily told Deo, as to Willow's shock Lotion came up beside her, standing with Xander and her against her own mother it seemed.

"What is . . .?" Willow muttered in shock as she saw her hands glow. She brought them up, and Xander and Lotion looked wide-eyed at her glowing hands. "But, but . . ." Willow panicked at which time twin energy blasts left the palms of her hands and slammed into the asphalt. The asphalt cracked and a flower grew out of it.

Deo chucked out loud, and said to the concerned trio, "I'll remove it, if you formerly promise you give up your claim on my future son in law."

"Listen, you bitch!" Willow growled, making fireworks explode right over her head. She looked at a moment, and then ignored it, "You can throw every damn test you can think of at me, a thousand times over and every single time will be the same outcome: I'll beat every time!"

"Uhm, Willow?" Xander asked slowly.

"Huh?" Willow asked turning around, not seeing Xander. She blinked, and something told her to look up. Her eyes widened as she saw Xander hanging there almost three meters off the ground. Willow looked shocked, and then turned around when she heard a feminine whimper. There, just as high as Xander, Lotion was hanging similarly. Willow blinked several times, realizing that she didn't have the power or lift even _/one/_ person that high off the ground. She felt the heat inside her, that had gone lower somehow, grow again.

"Could you put us down, please?" Xander asked gently.

"Uh," Willow said, then nodded while swallowing. She brought up her hands in a magical sign and concentrated. Slowly the two people started coming down. Suddenly Xander and Lotion turned horizontal and crashed down to the ground with great speed. Both of them groaned in pain as they crashed out to the ground. "Oh, my god! I'm sorry!" Willow yelled with concern and guilt. There was a sound, a momentary flicker of light, and suddenly two masses of water hung just above Xander and Lotion. Then gravity got a hold of them. With a splash both of them were drenched, and Xander's masculine clothes clung to Lexa's very feminine breasts. "Oops?" Willow said in mortification.

At Deo's belly laughter Lotion and Lexa painfully sat up. Deo then said, "You certain about that scenario, witch? I would stay, but I don't feel like getting caught up in your hijinx. Have fun with the test!" Deo then jumped away.

"One of these days, I will kill my mother," Lotion deadpanned and then grabbed her wet clothes, pulling the clinging, wet material from her skin. "Ugh."

"Uhm, guys?" Willow started as the two finished getting up. Willow then screeched with fright as two columns of fire enveloped her two friends. When the pillars of flames were gone, two dry, but singed and blackened girls stood were wet ones stood before. Willow sighed with relief and two windows from the house behind her exploded in a million pieces.

Lexa checked herself with an annoyed look, and said, "Well, I'm thinking the bitch at least made sure you couldn't truly hurt anyone, or we'd be crispy now."

"Not enough to keep me from killing her," Lotion said darkly checking out her burned self with horror. She put effort in looking good, and this was horrible.

"We should get to Jenny," Willow muttered very carefully, attempting to keep a lid on her magical abilities. "She can help . . . I hope."

-----

Buffy wandered through the cemetery almost casually. She'd already taken out several vampires, and felt good. The training she was going through with Xander and Lotion was seriously improving her. Best was that she was upgraded to training with Xander on a regular basis, putting Cordelia with Lotion alone.

She came by a mausoleum, and became aware of sounds coming from inside. Buffy frowned and walked over. She carefully opened the already open doorway a bit further and peered inside. There was a vampire busy digging around in one the tombs inside. Buffy considered for a moment, and then grinned; always good to play a few games with her prey to make her look more dangerous than she was. Carefully she closed the door back to its former position, and took a few steps back. She waited, and after a short while the door was opened softly. The vampire with glasses on and a beard came out carefully, looking at the door which was going to gently close fully.

"Hi, there," Buffy said happily, her left arm over her chest, her right arm casually twirling the stake near her head. The vampire jerked and then looked with wide eyes of shock at the blonde Slayer. Buffy added with a smirk, "You didn't think I wouldn't know what you were doing were you? By the way, I got to ask; why do you disturb the dead? Don't you people have any decency. Oh, wait, I forgot, you're not a people."

Dalton looked nervously at the smiling Slayer, he knew he was dead, but his fear kept him rooted to the spot for now. Suddenly there was a growl and from behind a bush another vampire came rushing at Buffy. Buffy noticed it too, and turned around taking on the new vampire. She blocked his first punch, and grabbed his second. With a quick twist Buffy pulled the vampire along. Suddenly she reached out and grabbed around his throat, holding him back. She pulled the vampire down with her, while simultaneously bring her stake down. A moment later the vampire was dance. Perkily Buffy got up and said, "That's one down, and . . ." Buffy finished turning around and searched with her eyes grave-robbing vampire. "One down?" Buffy finished with a frown, then shrugged and moved on with her patrol.

To Be Continued . . .


	19. part 19

----19---- 

Jenny Calendar opened her door at the insistent ringing, and then her eyes bugged out. There they were; the three of them. Boy were they ever there. Lotion was fuming, as she was drenched, was wearing tiny, shiny, pink shorts that showed more ass than it kept covered, an even tighter top that didn't reach her belly button, but worst of all had bunny ears on her head. Next to her was Xander - an equally drenched, _/male/_ Xander, in a super short, micro skirted cheerleader getup, having pink pon pons on his hands, and his hair in pigtails. He looked miserable, as well as ridiculously hilarious. With an a supreme effort of will, Jenny Calender - much to her own surprise - managed to stifle a giggle fit down to a snort and cramped smile. The look in Xander's eyes darkened visibly at her. Quickly Jenny looked to the third person - one Willow Rosenberg - who was standing in the middle and in front of the other two. She was just as miserable and just as drenched, partially by tears that even now were flowing from her eyes. She was wearing a sexy blue blouse showing some cleavage, and a short skirt - but Jenny guessed she had put them on herself. Worse though, was her previously beautifully done hair that was messed up and seemingly entangled in glue or gum or something else Jenny couldn't quite make out.

"What in blazes?" Jenny finally managed out, the shock of the event overcoming the ridiculousness. She looked sharply down in Willow's eyes - if she had done some irresponsible magic, causing this, teaching magic would be over and she'd bind the redhead's growing magic. A mix of shame, indignance, annoyance and a hint of anger filtered through Willow's eyes. "IIEEE!" Jenny shrieked as she froze to the bone and was equally drenched as the others. Willow looked down at the floor again.

"My mother - I _/kill/_," a newly drenched Lotion hissed out, apparently too angry to bother with proper grammer.

There came a sigh of partial relief and annoyance from Xander, now Lexa, and she said, "Well, at least I'm a girl wearing this getup now."

"Sorry," Willow whimpered, and the glass in the door's windows shattered, falling down in several big pieces.

"What did she do?" Jenny said rapidly, teeth shattering at the cold, ushering the three teens into her house.

"Super charged her chi and magic somehow," Lexa explained as she pushed Willow out in front of her.

Lotion entered behind her, and Jenny looked down as she closed the door, noticing the cute black and white bunny tail right at the apex of her butt, coming through the shorts. Jenny breathed in sharply, and suddenly looked up as Lotion said dangerously, "_/Don't/_ say it." Jenny nodded.

They entered Jenny's living room behind the narrow entrance corridor. The living room was tastefully furnished, with a lot of wood paneling. There were two leather couches - a three-seater and a love seat with a dark green color. Then one chair as part of the same set. A television stood in the far left corner street-side, and before it in the middle of the couches and chair was a short, round, black table. The walls had the same green color as the couches and chair. Two cupboards stood on either side of the cosy living room, one carrying glasses, plates and stuff to drink, some of it seen through the windows on the front side.

"Now every time she's a little emotional everything goes haywire," Lexa finished her explanation.

"I'm sorry," Willow whimpered, having taken Xander's explanation as an accusation. As a demonstration of Xader's words, things went indeed haywire. The glass windows in the cupboard shattered, and it and equally shattering glasses and plates inside it started flying around the world as if carried along a whirlwind - which incidently was true, the wind being generated by Willow's out of control magic. Lotion, Willow, and Jenny ducked immediately, as did Xander, but since she was closest to the cupboard her ducking wasn't fast enough.

"AAH!" Lexa yelled out as a piece of glass made a shallow cut on her arm.

"Oh, my god, oh, my god!" Willow yelled out at the event, and with a sparkling of light, the tastefully decorated room turned into a glaring place of color and polka dots. The black table was in all the colors of the rainbow, as were the couches and the walls.

Jenny groaned as she saw the change, and knew she had to do something before things got a whole lot worse. Risking her life from the whirlwind and flying debris, she jumped up and over the couch. She ducked down then next to Willow and grabbed her by the shoulders, making the witch look into her eyes. "Calm down, Willow," Jenny said, except that the sudden grasp had already spiked Willow's surprise. Her eyes glowed dark green for a moment, and Jenny groaned, feeling her body change. With a quick stab of pain she became aware of something growing out the back of ass, causing her to groan, several sharp point jutting into her lips ass, and the relocating of her ears. Willow screeched in even grater shock, as Jenny Calender just turned into Cat Calender - as in a humanoid cat. Her face remained, except her ears were pointy, covered in black fur and stood up on her head. Her hands, and the skin below her neck that her blouse allowed to be visible, was covered in black fur. Finally another change became visible when Jenny opened her mouth to speak: long feline canine teeth.

"Oh, my god!" Willow said in shock, and as her hands glowed the cupboards were instantly turned into clowns' faces and upper body on a spring, wobbling back and forth at human height.

"Breathe in deeply, Willow, then breathe out, inhale, exhale," Jenny said with a cool voice. The training she had been giving Willow paid off, the girl started breathing in and out. "None of this is your fault, Willow, allow the breathing to calm yourself down." Jenny went further down, sitting in a lotus position and Willow followed automatically. "Relax, pull all your magic down and in, inhale, exhale, calm." As Jenny continued to voice her commands in the calming tone, Willow steadily calmed down doing her exercises. The hair of the four women slowly whirled less, and the whirlwind Willow had inadvertently created became less loud. Then the glass clanged to the multi-colored floor, before the wind fully went away. The colors stayed though. As Jenny's calming voice droned on instructing Willow, Lotion and Xander slowly rose from their positions. The two still dripping and wet girls looked around with relief as the immediate crisis was averted.

Having determined all was calm, Lotion took in the damage - or rather the color change. Her eyes bulged out at the horrifying place, and Xander looked with wide eyes at the most psychedelic of psychedelic ever to be seen by anyone. "Whoa," Lotion started lightly.

"_/Don't/_ say it," an equally wet Jenny said. Lotion nodded. Jenny looked forlorn at the horrifying way Willow's hairs were messed up - for her sake Jenny hoped this wasn't permanent, Willow would have to shave her hair off.

Willow looked wistfully as she continued her breathing exercises. Jenny let her hands move around Willow's body, eyes closed and senses. Jenny opened her eyes, and let out a tiny feline growl she couldn't suppress. She looked backward at Lexa and said, "You're right, Xander. She did boost Willow's energy artificially - it's completely out of control. That _/woman/_ - and I use the term loosely - is completely irresponsible."

"Well," Xander said with annoyance, and grimacing as he felt his cut. "As much as I hate to admit it, as far as we could determine, Willow can't harm anyone directly with her magic. We've had several far too close calls if she can."

Lotion noticed it, and asked Jenny quickly, "Where are the first aid supplies?"

"Kitchen, first cupboard on the right," Jenny quickly answered, before returning to keeping Willow calm and determining as exactly as she could what Deo had done to Willow. She then added to Lexa, "And that doesn't stop her from doing it indirectly, does it?"

A little while later Lotion returned to the living room, and quickly went over to Lexa, cleaning the wound and then put some padding on it, and wrapped it in bandages. "It's just a small cut," Lexa said, but Lotion finished what she did.

"Can you fix her?" Lotion asked of Jenny.

With her eyes closed and testing Willow, Jenny answered, "Not quite, I don't know enough about what exact spell Deo used. I can teach Willow how to keep the magic locked away, but it'll take time."

Lexa took walked over to the sitting couple, squatted down and smiling in Willow's face she said, "Not a spell, but just like she did with me; pushed several pressure points and poured her chi into them."

Willow whimpered. "Stay calm, Willow, you're safe here," Jenny murmured, then looked at her guests - Lotion having arrived behind Xander, looking concerned. "This will take a long time, and you here might just upset her, better you two go home," Jenny told them carefully.

Lotion nodded, and so did Lexa. Lexa looked deep in Willow's eyes, and told her, "You can beat her, Willow, I know you can. You listen to Jenny here and it'll be fine."

"I will," Willow confirmed softly, and a new splash of water covered them all - warm water again this time. Jenny quickly took hold of Willow's attention, as a male Xander in a cheerleader uniform growled in frustration.

After making sure he was a girl again, Xander and Lotion left Willow in Jenny's care.

-----

Buffy climbed up the roof to her bedroom window, and placed her bag with slayer gear on the window sill. Inside she saw Angel check out some things on her dresser. She raised her eyebrows with curiosity, and asked amused, "See anything you like?"

Angel twisted around, gasping in breath, and said, "Buffy . . . you scared me."

As Buffy finished climbing into her window, she said with a smile, "Now you know what it feels like for a change. Why are you waiting here anyway?"

"Uh," Angel started, watching the breathtaking blonde put her bag on the bed and start to unpack it, "Just in case your mother isn't still all groovy with this, and . . . uh . . . seems like a good guess?"

Buffy turned her head and frowning answered, "She is, makes me slaying lunch packages and everything - only not right now because she to LA on some expose trip or some such. Why? And by the way, 'groovy'? That's prehistoric - don't _/ever/_ use it anymore."

"Why did you come through the wind then?" Angel returned confused, as Buffy finished her unpacking.

The Slayer turned around, and frowned as she considered his question. "Habit," Buffy pouted, and quickly changed the subject, "So, why are you here anyway?"

"I've been hearing rumblings in the demon and vampire community," Angel said with a concerned frown. "Something is happening, I thought you should be warned."

Buffy stood still and took Angel with a long silent look. The vampire unconsciously looked down to see if something was wrong. Buffy's mouth quirked for a moment into a smile when she noticed the motion, and then told him, "Angel is in my room, the bearer of doom - why am I not surprised?"

"Ya . . . well . . . I . . ." Angel muttered not really knowing what to say. "You seem down, did I . . .?"

"No," Buffy told him depressed, "It's this thing at school-"

"Career fair," Angel supplied.

Buffy nodded, still depressed and turning away, "Yeah, it's this whole thing about the future and what you want to be, not exactly for me, with the whole preordained destiny . . ." Buffy blinked, rapidly turned back around to face the souled vampire, and asked, "And how do you know about that anyway?"

"Uh, I lurk," Angel answered nervously.

"Oh, I supposed you . . ." Buffy trailed off, thinking over his words, remembering many of Xander's. "And that's either really romantic, or really creepy . . ."

Angel swallowed as he felt himself sinking into his shoes, and almost stuttered out, "N-not much el-else to do for me during the d-day. I'll stop."

Buffy took him in with a thoughtful look, while at the same being wigged out, and she told him, "Angel, you need a hobby - seriously."

A new lump formed in the souled vampire's throat. Fidgeting he remembered the pictured he saw on the dresser, and decided a change of subject would be good. He turned a bit more to his left, gestured to the picture, and asked, "Is that you?"

Buffy looked over and looked at the picture Angel was pointing at. It was her in a skirt, gloves, scarf, and a woolly cap, mostly pink, standing on skates in an ice ring. "Oh, my god," Buffy said a little mortified. "That was my Dorothy Hamill phase. My mom and dad weren't all that okay at the time, and I escaped into that world. My room was a Dorothy shrine. I had posters on the walls, cut-out articles glued in notebooks; everything . . ."

"You wanted to be like her," Angel concluded with a happy smile.

"I wanted to _/be/_ her," Buffy corrected, a nostalgic smile on her face, remembering her innocent childhood time.

Angel smiled some more, and said, "When was the last time you were on the ice?"

Buffy let herself fall on her bed, sitting there and looking up trying to remember. "Uh, I'm pretty certain that was _/before/_ I was called, more than two years ago," Buffy said a little sadly.

"I know this ice ring just outside of Sunnydale, and I happen to know it's closed on Tuesday evenings," Angel said with a grin.

Buffy looked at him with large twinkling eyes, then got up saying excitedly, "Tomorrow is Tuesday."

Angel nodded with a smile. Buffy smiled back.

-----

Inside Spike's lair Dalton, the bearded, glasses-wearing brainiac vampire presented a golden cross to Spike. "I got it," he said, and Spike took the cross with a huge, evil grin.

"Perfect, now just translate the book, and you'll be as good as new, my love," Spike turned back to look at his lover sitting on her four-poster bed.

"Yeah, but the Slayer almost got me, and put a stop to that - again," Dalton pointed out to his master.

"DON'T YOU THINK I BLOODY KNOW THAT!" Spike yelled out angrily, stalking back and forth across the room like a caged animal. "It's Slayer here, Slayer there, and if it isn't the Slayer, it's one of her sodding super friends! They're the bloody thorns in my eyes, that's what they bugger well are!" Spike suddenly stopped, and looked up as if someone had turned on a light above him. "I think it's about time we call in the big guns, that should take care of them nicely." Dalton looked confused, while Spike looked at Drusilla on whose face a grin spread. "I'll call in the order of Teraka, they'll solve the problem for us," Spike spoke with a wide grin.

"The order of Teraka?" Dalton exclaimed in shock. "The assassins? Isn't that overkill?"

"Ooh," Drusilla spoke with a smile, starting to lay open cards, and Spike walked next to her bed. "Three of them are coming to my birthday party."

"Actually," Spike spoke grimly, before an evil smile spread on his face, "I don't think they're enough kill; it isn't just the Slayer we're dealing with here."

Drusilla danced her upper body left and right like a snake, saying, "Of course, Miss Edith, I forgot the threefold rule." Above the first row of three cards, Drusilla started laying another row of cards, while saying, "Three times three is nine big bad wolves, and the three little piggies don't have enough stone for a house . . ." A square of nine cards lay on the blankets in front of Drusilla, and the deranged vampire looked up at her lover with insanely evil smile, one Spike eagerly returned.

-----

**"-MOTHEEEERRR!-"** Lotion screamed with all her pent up rage into their apartment above the restaurant. "I _/will/_ kill!" Lotion stormed into the small living room, with a brown, cloth couch. A small table was nearby.

Deo came in from the kitchen and looked at her enraged daughter, and then noticing the ears, that were pulled back a bit with Lotion's rage, she laughed out loud. With a scream of rage Lotion charged forward and tried to grab Deo's collar, but the older and more experienced Amazon almost casually avoided her daughter's lunge. "Oh, calm down, it's not permanent," Deo told her daughter with a grin. "If Willow manages to pass the test, she doesn't turn you back the same way she made you a bunny, and if she doesn't come begging, then in a few days at most it will be over. Willow will return to normal, and so will you along with her."

"A FEW DAYS!" Lotion screamed out angrily. Then she growled, "**-How-** I will show myself school?"

Deo blinked, and then muttered, "Hmm."

-----

The next morning

Willow timidly stepped onto school property. She was in a drab yeans coverall with a red shirt underneath. She wasn't wearing any makeup, and her hair hung drably down her face. This was no time to get excited after all, and she had spent most of the morning pushing her magic down, not having had the time to properly get dressed anyway.

Nervously she walked onward into the school courtyard, and soon found Buffy coming excitedly at her. "Willow! Do I have something to tell you!" Buffy exclaimed out, as she reached her best friend, who tried to smile at Buffy's excitement, which died down when Buffy saw Willow. "What's with the drab look again?" Buffy asked her, and Willow gave an involuntary whimper, then she tried to unsuccessfully hide her pained face. "Hey? What's with the pouty face? What happened?"

Willow looked around, and then Buffy drew her along, quickly finding a bench with relative privacy. She sat both of them down, and out came the whole story. The date with Xander and how it started out so good, and then Deo, what she did, and what happened after, spending the night at Jenny's learning super control of super charged magic. It was the longest babble Buffy had ever heard Willow utter, and on more than one occasion she'd miss pieces. When Willow was finished and took a deep steadying breath, Buffy looked left, and since she was turned to face Willow, she looked at the large trough with plants. Buffy's eyes widened - where before it had just been a few dull, green plants, now flowers were sprouting out the ground everywhere, and plants were in bloom. Willow followed her friend's gaze, and her eyes widened. She quickly put her hands together in front of her chest, and breathing deeply she chanted very softly, "Calm, cool, down, down, all the way down."

"Wow," Buffy said at the whole story and the blooming flowers. "That bitch," she added after that. Buffy then turned concerned to Willow, and said, "You could have stayed home, you know, till we found a solution?"

Willow vehemently shook her head, and explained, "No, not going to lose my stake on Xander, and I still have a date to finish tonight."

"Which reminds me," Buffy said, smiling. If Willow didn't know better, she'd say it was a shy smile. Buffy continued, "I have a date tonight too." Willow's eyes lit up, and Buffy answered her unspoken question, "Angel."

"Really?" Willow asked, hope swelling into her - if Buffy wanted Angel, Xander would be free.

"Yeah, I thought if I have to decide who I want, I better figure out which," Buffy said with a grin.

"WAWAWAWAAAA!" somebody screamed, and Buffy and Willow looked up; seeing a guy slide across an iced pavement, swinging his hands wildly till he crashed into a wall. There he stayed for a moment, before slowly falling back over, groaning. Buffy let out a short laugh, and then looked at Willow, who smiled with her eyes closed, locking her magic away again. Across the courtyard some of the guy's friends walked over without trouble asking him what had happened. It seemed Willow's control had let the ice melt

"Oops," Willow said Buffy with a guilty grin. The two girls grinned at each other.

"Hey, guys!" Willow and Buffy looked up, and watched as Xander in simple jeans and a shirt came walking over. When he reached them he bent over and looked concerned at Willow. "You okay?"

"I should be asking you that," Willow answered him with a smile. "We're still on for the repeat tonight, right?"

"Yeah, if you can," Xander told her with a concerned smile.

Willow nodded vehemently, while Buffy smiled at her friends. Willow said, "Absolutely, not gonna let her get to me."

"Nihau," a sullen voice spoke, and they looked all to the left. For once Lotion wasn't all bright and positive. She was wearing a hat, underneath which she had hidden her bunny ears; and with extreme effort she had put herself in a skirt so it could fall - not quite successfully - over her tail.

Buffy blinked at the strange look for the Amazon, and then flashed back to what Willow had said. Lotion was a bunny; she could now see the strain on Lotion's face as she had to push her ears flat to fit underneath the hat. One moment of losing control and her ears would whip up, launching the hat away. The image came to Buffy instantly, and she saw the odd, small bulge on the back of the Amazon. While laughter threatened to overtake her, Buffy became aware of the piercing, angry eyes the Amazon was directing her way.

"_/Don't/_ you _/dare/_," Lotion growled at Buffy, having figured out someone had told her, most likely Willow.

Buffy crunched up her face, which twitched as it struggled to let out the laughter welling up in her. She was acutely aware of the cold gaze the Amazon was still drilling in her - laughter would mean getting her ass kicked. A few wheezes escaped Buffy's tightly pressed lips, and Buffy clamped her hand over her mouth. She looked up and saw Lotion still regarding her the same way.

Xander watched the exchange, looking back and forth between the two, and noticing Willow stare with wide eyes at Lotion willing Buffy not to laugh. Xander smiled, and then gave one short laugh. "Come on," he told them before they could say anything. He walked toward the school entrance and the girls followed. "Let's check what we got."

A few moments later the foursome arrived at the bulletin board outside of the school, where Cordelia was checking her result. "Ooh! Motivational speaker or personal shopper!" Cordelia exclaimed with happiness. "Great!"

"Motivate yourself to shop more?" Lotion questioned deadpan.

"Hey, I was going to say that!" Xander exclaimed in mock affront. Buffy giggled. Lotion kept smiling greatly, and Willow attempted to keep the giggles and her magic in check - just barely successful this time.

Cordelia looked at Xander. She wanted him, a romance that is, but no matter how much she wanted to woo him, her own pride and bitchy instincts did the answering for her. "Ha, ha, girly man, go check what you're going to be," Cordelia spoke to Xander with her arms across her chest.

"What?" Xander asked with a dreaded face. Cordelia gritted her teeth, and mentally slamming a hand in her forehead, forced a smile on her face. "What?" Xander repeated and then quickly went to the bulletin board, zipping passed names, then found his and read.

The others stayed silent as Xander reread it again. "What is it?" Buffy finally asked unable to contain her curiosity.

Cordelia smiled smugly at Buffy, and answered for Xander, "Prison guard." Buffy's face crunched up with mirth. Lotion looked confused, and Willow's eyes were wide with empathy.

Xander got up, turned to face his friends and groaned out, "Nooo!"

"What's so bad?" Lotion wondered out, and Buffy just laughed out loud, gaining a glare from Xander. Cordelia smirked, while Willow remained empathic.

"What's so bad?" Xander asked the Amazon in shock. "I'd be babysitting a bunch of losers, psychos and worse all in grey! Grey walls! Grey uniforms! And Grey bars! Do I look grey to you?"

Buffy laughed out loud, and Willow couldn't help but giggle. Cordelia's smile faded as she felt herself lift into the air. "Huh?" she muttered, and then looked down in shock. "Hey! I'm floating away!" she said in shock, desperately grabbing for the board. She got it and pushed herself down, staying a few centimeters above the ground.

"Oh, god," Willow said, and quickly clamped down again, placing her hands together in front of her.

Splash! Willow's guilt over making Cordelia fly away, made a splash of water fall right over Buffy. The Slayer stood there, looking in shock as she was wet and cold. Her shirt and skirt clung to her body; and Xander couldn't help but smirk and take in the now the form fitting outfit - or rather what was underneath. Luckily for them, they were standing around Buffy, so nobody noticed the impossible event.

As Cordelia floated down again, Lotion couldn't hold back a starting giggle. The cheerleader breathed a sigh of relief, taking a step away from Willow and behind Xander, as Buffy suddenly whipped around, and wet through to the bone, she glared at the Amazon, raising a warning finger. "I didn't - with you," Buffy hissed out. Then she looked up, and whimpered, "My hair."

As Lotion gave a few final muffled giggles, Willow wined, "I'm sorry, you guys. It's what Deo did to me."

"It's not your fault, Willow," Buffy reassured her, and looked back at Xander, who quickly looked at the career board. Buffy pouted, and looked sadly at her wet clothes, pulling up her shirt, and asked, "Please, Xander, give me some good news to cheer me up."

Xander finished finding Buffy, and said, "Law enforcement."

"Uh?" Buffy asked with a horrified look, while it was Cordelia's time to giggle.

"What's so bad about law enforcement?" Lotion asked dumbfounded. "You get to kick bad guys' asses."

Xander grinned, perfectly grasping Buffy's mind set after spending all those months being her friend. "Polyester, donuts, nightsticks, and bad accessorizing," he spelled out for the Amazon.

Lotion looked confused, while Cordelia asked softly with an evil grin, "Can a Slayer get fat on donuts?"

"Uhuh," Buffy muttered out in horror, as Cordelia giggled, and Lotion looked up herself.

"My condolences, Buffy," Xander said gravely.

"AAAAH!" Lotion screamed, making everyone jump to see her, a sudden gust of wind made a group of students close by fall over, making Willow look guiltily away again.

"What?" Xander asked her.

"P-p-p-pe-per-personal as-assitant," Lotion stammered out with horror. They looked blankly at her. Out of herself, Lotion explained, "All day long with a smile, being nice to some man or woman, 'yes, sir,' 'yes, sir', 'right away, sir'. The horror. How can they think I would be good at that?"

They looked at her for a moment, before Willow got fed up with waiting. "Well, what am I?" she asked with a little dread taking in how three of her friends got horrible advices.

Xander and Buffy turned to the board, and checked it. "Uh . . ." Xander said confused after a while.

"You're not on there," a still very wet Buffy said in surprise.

The other three looked confused, while Willow spoke, "What? But- but I used a number 2 pencil, and I delivered it in the right box."

The five of them stayed silent, looking at Willow. Finally Cordelia spoke up, and said, "Typical, so in the 'out' crowd, she can't even stay in a career test."

"Now that's mean," Buffy spoke up, while Lotion still seemed horrified into silence about the receptionist, and Willow glared at Cordelia. Suddenly a gust of wind rushed up from the ground and mad Cordelia's clothes whip up, including her skirt.

"Aah!" she yelled, as she got whistles from guys around. Her four friends chuckled.

The wind died down and Cordelia glared at Willow.

"Not my fault, blame her mother," Willow whimpered. Cordelia's glare narrowed with suspicion, then put her head up, and walked away.

Buffy sighed, and took in her wet clothes, "Oh, man. I gotta get to Giles and to his report- in-first-thing phase; and I can change into some of my spare clothes."

Buffy marched on, and her friends only then kicked in, following her. Not expecting that, Buffy suddenly found her walking ahead of the other three, completely visible for everyone. They looked, but halfway to the entrance the true horror happened. Harmony Kendall and the other Cordettes came out the school, and once she spotted Buffy, the nasty blonde spoke, "What's the matter? Needed to fish _/yourself/_ out of the river?"

Buffy grimaced, her left eye twitching once, thinking, -Can't kill humans, can't kill humans, that would be bad.- Buffy noticed Harmony still walking into the shadow of the building heading toward sun. -Be a vampire, be a vampire,- Buffy thought with a hopeful gaze. Harmony walked laughingly into the sun: no sizzling, no smoking, no pain, no bursting into flame. "Damn," four voices spoke as one.

-----

There was a slight knocking coming from the back door, making Giles look up suspiciously. He quickly went over to the weapon cage in the middle of the library, and took out a sword. He went over to the back door, up the stairs, and there made sure he had a good grasp on the sharp object bringing it up. A small voice told him opening the door was stupid without a Slayer present, but then sighed, and opened it. He looked directly at a hooded, quite hairy figure. He grimaced and prepared to slash down the demon.

"Rupert, it's me!" the figured hissed, holding up, now obviously, her hands disarmingly.

Giles held his sword still, took a better look, blinked, and then with a dropped jaw said, "Jenny?"

A feline purr came from her throat and she jumped over the threshold, grabbing him around the neck, and putting her lips against his. She kissed him deeply, dueling with his tongue, and he eagerly returned the favor - still holding the sword comically over his head. His eyes jumped back open when he felt her canines, her nails embedding into his back, and her tail wrapping around his waist. She broke the kiss, and he staggered back, then staggered some more waiving his arms around for balance. The sword was too much and he dropped to his ass, looking up dumbfounded as Jenny removed the long cloak, showing more of her new feline form. "Wh-wh-what happened?" he stammered out.

Jenny grinned and went to close the door, simultaneously explained, "Willow, or rather the test Deo placed upon her. I'm going to have a hardy word with that irresponsible bitch tonight, but first I gotta look for a cure for Willow here - it isn't like I can barge into her restaurant at broad daylight - it should reverse my and Lotion's condition as well."

"Lotion?" Giles muttered taking Jenny's offered hand and slowly getting up, taking in the catfied Jenny more precisely, eyes still wide.

"She's a bunny," Jenny explained with a smile. "Hmm, now that I think about, Xander didn't change into anything, perhaps his curse stopped that from happening." Jenny quickly walked - or perhaps stalked was a better word - over to a specific section of the library containing the darker magic books.

"Uhm," Giles muttered, still taking in his half-cat girlfriend. It was confusing, and somehow . . . no, Giles would not entertain that thought - that way lead to improper thoughts. "Wh-what about the kiss? I-I thought y-you . . ."

"Relax, Rupe," Jenny positively purred as she pulled out a few books, her tail lazily flipping about, "After last night's unfortunate events, I realized the moment I decided to take Willow under my wing, I should have expected the worst . . ." Jenny paused and took in the still collecting himself Giles. She smiled, and then walked to the tables down in the lower area. As she restarted talking, Giles followed her, "it's not your fault, what you did, you did a long time ago - I love the Rupert Giles of today; not the Ripper of then." Jenny purred as she reached the table and placed the books down. She turned around suggestively, continuing the sexy purr, and said, "Although I hope there's just a smidgen of Ripper left in you, delicious, just in the right places, with the right dosage."

Giles eyes were wide, and then he swallowed deeply. Jenny was beautiful, and she was promiscuous, but she wasn't _/this/_ promiscuous, never this overly sexual. It had an odd effect on him - okay, quite a common effect. She smiled as she opened up the books and started researching. Giles took a deep breathe and prepared to help her when the doors to the library whipped open.

A very wet Buffy summers entered the library, yapping (according to Giles) about, "Giles! I'm here for our morning reporting-in ritual, and I need some dry clothes from the spare st- . . ." Buffy noticed Jenny sitting at the table with a magic book in front of her. "Giles!" Buffy said, afraid for his life seeing the 'demon' sitting there. She took several rapid steps forward, not bothering with taking each and everyone of the few steps down to the lowest floor of the library, saying, "Look out! The- . . ." Buffy halted in her tracks, blinked, remembered Willow's story and said sheepishly grabbing her wet shirt, "Oh, Jenny. Uhm, sorry, Willow told me what happened."

Cat-Jenny smiled at Buffy as Giles asked, "What happened to you?"

Buffy looked down at herself, and said, "More Willow hijinks, she doesn't have it fully under control yet, but I think there won't be animal transformations anymore." The Slayer then quickly walked behind the counter and into the office, while talking, "Come on, Giles, let's do this briefing thing while I change; I'm going to be late for class."

"O-okay," Giles muttered and walked to the counter, closer to his office so he could here Buffy speaking. He turned around before he started not to accidentally catch a glimpse - and be pummeled to death because of it. "Start with telling me what happened on patrol."

Buffy's voice was muffled as she pulled her top up over her head, as she spoke, "Nothing much. Came across some vamps, staked them. Came across one odd demon that was attempting to dig up a corpse, probably to eat it, staked it too and turned into a goo before it disappeared into the ground.

"Oh, and there were those couple of vamps stealing something," Buffy finished, already busy with her underwear. "One of 'em got away."

"Stealing?" Giles spoke up suddenly, starting to pace.

"Yeah, from this tomb, they had flashlights and everything," Buffy's voice sounded from the office.

"Do you know what they stole?" Giles asked concerned suddenly, still pacing back and forth.

"Uh, no," came the answer.

Giles abruptly stopped, and asked a little irritated, "Did you even think to check?"

"I just thought it was your average day vampire hijinks," Buffy's voice sounded closer now.

"Well, what if it wasn't?" Giles asked, just as Buffy re-emerged from his office, in a pair of jeans and short-sleeved shirt having a v-neck. "If for once you bothered to use your head-"

"Hey!" Buffy interrupted, irritated herself now. "If you don't like me being the Slayer so much, why don't just ask someone else? Oh, wait, I forgot, there aren't any others. _/One/_ Slayer, that's all there is, me, and none else till I die. Hey! I don't have to be the Slayer, I can be dead."

Giles slumped, a little guilt creeping in, as well as defeat over Buffy's behavior. Jenny spoke up suddenly, sitting turned around to watch the interaction of Slayer and watcher. "You know, Buffy, ever considered the possibility Giles is so hard on you, to get you to use your head more, because that's exactly what he doesn't want: you dead? That if you listened to him a bit more, you have a much bigger chance to survive?"

Buffy looked at the intruder, having taken a step back at the power of the meaning. She looked back up at Giles, a little guilt creeping in, which she quickly shut down. "Buffy, we need to go find out what they could have stolen. Do you still remember where the tomb was?" Giles asked softly.

"Yeah," Buffy answered somewhat deflated from her earlier anger.

"Let's go then," Giles spoke, and gave Jenny a grateful look. "We'll be right back, don't let anyone see you."

"Cat ears and cat nose," Jenny said with a grin, touching said sensitive sensory organs. Giles nodded.

-----

"Hey, Xander," Willow spoke with a smile as she walked through the school halls. Career stands were everywhere, and students were milling about. Xander was walking at her, and smiled his own smile, quickly coming over. "Do you know where Buffy is?" Willow asked him, somewhat worried, and still subdued for fear of doing more magic - and this time it might not be so harmless.

"Yeah," Xander answered, smiling at his long-time friend, and potential girlfriend. Dang, how come he never really noticed? Even without makeup Willow was quite beautiful. Must have been the friend- and unwilling-to-stand-out factors. "Just ran into her and Giles, said they had to go check something out about . . . you know."

"That's not good," Willow said worryingly. "Buffy is supposed to be here, if Snyder . . ." At that point, Snyder came down the stairs behind her, and Xander quickly grabbed her right upper arm to make her face him. She hesitated a single moment before continuing, ". . . did a great job on this year's career fair, isn't that right, Xander?"

"Absolutely, I really like the decorations, so uplifting," Xander said with a fake happy smile.

"Spare me your speech, Harris," Snyder told him gruffly, "It's a toxic-waste dump that serves no purpose, nor does the process that produces it. You're below low."

Xander's eyes had narrowed, then slowly and deliberately he said, "Really? Well, sir, I can only hope than one day I'm in the position to be just as honest with you as you are with me, sir." His voice was sweet, but carried an undertone of cold venom the old Xander would never have dared to place in his voice.

Snyder who had been disinterestedly looking around, suddenly turned to face Xander. He quickly dismissed him, and turned his gaze to Willow, "So, Miss Rosenberg, you wouldn't happen to know where Summers is, would you? And spear me the 'I just saw her, she's around here somewhere' crap."

"But . . ." Willow started, paused for a moment but realized she wasn't actually able to say something else, and so continued, ". . . she _/did/_ just see her, and she _/is/_ around here somewhere." She actually looked around, gesturing to 'around' with the seeming expectation to spot her a moment.

Snyder just shoved his hands further into his pockets, and with a final glare, walked off.

"Well, that concludes that," Xander said with distaste, "now I get to go spend my time at a booth for prison guards . . . sometimes I understand why the demons wish to destroy the world. Wish me luck, Willow."

Willow went up on her tiptoes, having gathered her courage while Xander spoke, and planted a sweet kiss on his cheek. When Xander looked astonished at her, she said, "Good luck."

"Thanks," Xander said, his heart breaking as he walked off, hating the fact that he had to make a choice sooner or later between all his suitors, and inevitably ended up breaking several amazing girls' hearts - in some cases, again.

That left Willow looking around forlorn. She had no clue what to do, she wasn't assigned to a career booth, she wasn't even _/on/_ the board. Perhaps she should go and help Buffy? Or perhaps help her by keeping Snyder somehow from finding out she wasn't here. "Miss Rosenberg," a voice startled her. As she whirled around, a water dispenser at a booth burst open, spraying water over students who shrieked out. Willow cringed, reigning in her magic.

"Who are you?" Willow asked, taking in the two suited men.

"That is not important," the man who spoke earlier, started. "Just enter here," he spoke gesturing to a few white curtains to Willow's left barring some room from the rest of the hall.

"Not important?" Willow asked incredulously. "Do you think I just go wherever with some stranger for him to do . . . uh . . . some bad things with me?"

"I apologize, if that's what this looked like," the second man hastily covered, "we're from the career week, and this is your destination."

Willow blinked, looked at the curtains, and said, "But, I don't even have an outcome of the career placement test."

The first man spoke up again, "That wasn't necessary, Miss Rosenberg. We keep an eye out, and on, certain promising individuals. In fact, there's only one other student in Sunnydale who fit our criteria." He gestured to the curtains again.

Willow peered at the curtains for a third time, and considered. "Fine," she spoke forcefully, "but you better not try anything, I don't think you'd like should I get mad right now." Willow then strode over to the curtains, a little intimidated nonetheless, especially when she wondered that although what Deo did kept her from accidentally harming someone directly, did it also keep her from harming someone deliberately? Burned to a crisp came to mind.

The men did come inside with her. Inside being a small room with a comfortable couch and a low table. On the couch sat a boy, her age, blonde spikes for hair on his head. He seemed interesting enough at first glance, although why he seemed to examine the tray of treats he was holding on his right hand so diligently Willow didn't know. The guy looked up and did a double take - except that it was so imperceptible, Willow wasn't sure he did - she wasn't even sure he moved.

"Hi," he said, just a tiny hint of breathlessness at the very end there; one Willow didn't even notice.

"Hi," Willow returned, then shrugged off some of her remaining timidness, while pushing herself further down into herself, not wanting her magic to come out again. She walked over to the couch and sat down.

"I'm Oz," the guy introduced himself. "Daniel Osbourne," he quickly clarified.

"Willow," Willow returned the greet, "Rosenberg."

Oz looked down at the plate, and then turned it toward Willow. "Caviar?"

-----

"Buffy, would you slow down," Giles spoke as he ran a bit to catch up to the Slayer.

They just entered the cemetery, and Buffy, holding a flashlight, complained, "First I'm not moving fast enough, now I'm moving too fast, make up your mind, will you."

"Could you try and stop acting so immaturely?" Giles told her with some annoyance as he just managed to catch up, breathing heavy.

Buffy bit back at him, "I _/am/not/_ mature! I am a teenager, I have _/yet/_ to mature. I'm _/supposed/_ to act immature."

"Ah, yes," Giles said, remembering. "Well, I'm not used to you being _/this/_ immature, I perhaps forgot that little tidbit. Could you try getting back to your usually level of maturity and immaturity?" Buffy gave a huff. "What is bothering you so?"

Buffy stopped and turned around to face Giles. She was about to start a diatribe about how there wasn't anything bothering her, but one look into Giles' eyes removed that option. She looked down and dejected, saying, "It's this career fair. The others, even Lotion, get to got through the whole 'what could I be' a few years down the line. Me, whatever I think up, I'll know it's just a fantasy that'll never become true. I'll be Slaying till the day I die."

"I hadn't thought of that, I'm sorry," Giles spoke, and then his face lit up. "But I'm sure that you can find some other way to be gainfully employed next to Slaying. Look, I'm a watcher and I have a job."

Buffy looked at him disbelief, and then shrugged, saying, "You're a librarian. See how that goes nicely with being a Watcher, that's practically _/being/_ a librarian. Exactly what will allow me to be out at night, and slay during office hours? Prostitution?" She then turned around irritably and started walking again.

"Well, no, of course not," Giles said, looking down as he followed her. "Say, have you thought about law enforcement."

Buffy whipped about, and pointed a warning finger at Giles, and said, "Don't - mention that again." The she added defeated, "It isn't like it matters anyway. I'll probably be dead before I can get a full time job that isn't flipping burgers."

Buffy started to turn, but suddenly found Giles having a strong grip on her right upper arm. She turned back, and looked up in Giles eyes - steel eyes. She shivered for a moment, now grasping Giles really could have been 'ripper' in his younger years. Giles spoke with a surprising gentle voice, "Don't. Don't think like that, Buffy. You're stronger now than any Slayer I've read about and you were strong before Xander came back and started training you. He and Lotion are both stronger than you still, surprisingly, so you can become even more powerful. Deo is several orders of a magnitude more agile and strong than the three of you combined, it seems, and I think Xander is pretty dead set on not only equaling her, but surpassing her." Buffy still looked very moved and surprised up into Giles' eyes, but he wasn't finished yet. "Keep training, you'll grow that strong as well, I'm certain. Better yet - you are not alone. The Slayers before you, were just a Slayer and a watcher, you have two friends fighting alongside you, both stronger than you are, a mother of one of those friends even more strong who agreed to fight when necessary, a witch friend whose magic is growing, and her teacher committed to this fight as well. I think you'll be old and grey before you die."

Tears sprung in Buffy's eyes, and she herself didn't even know where they came from. "You think so," she whimpered hopefully, and Giles nodded. Buffy slumped forward and hugged her watcher. "Thank you," she muttered as he returned the hug and she slowly regained control of her emotions, "I suppose that's what Xander was trying to tell me yesterday; when he said if I died early we'd be dying together. I just didn't want think about making a mistake that got them killed." Buffy's tears returned, but she forced herself out of Giles' hug. Swallowing a lump, she said, "They'll be fighting alongside me." A small smile crept up her face, and then turned around, staying still.

"Better?" Giles asked. Buffy pointed at the tomb where the vampires had been stealing. Giles took a better look, and read the writing above the entrance. "Du Lac . . . oh, dear god." He turned around and started walking.

"What?" Buffy spoke up, and quickly followed Giles. "This isn't good, is it?"

"No, Buffy, this is bad," Giles spoke.

"Shit, just my luck," Buffy muttered and shook her head as they came passed a wall holding urns. Something caught the corner of her eyes, and she paused for a moment. She turned to face the wall, and took in one urn seat that was adorned with flowers among many barren ones. Wondering she took a step forward and read the name underneath cared for urn. "Jesse McNally," she whispered out the name, and her eyes widened in shock, feeling a lump form in the pit of her stomach.

"Are you coming?" Giles called from a bit far away.

Buffy turned, and said, "Yeah, I'm coming."

-----

While Jenny was looking through another book for a cure for Willow, and through it herself and Lotion. Willow, and Xander sat in chairs at the same table looking through more books, while Buffy leant on the chairs they were occupying. Giles came from behind a book case, and explained, "Du Lac was a priest, a brilliant magician, mathematician and demonologist at the turn of the century. Unfortunately, his experiments went much too far, and too dangerous according to the Catholic church, and so they excommunicated him and his followers."

"Banished, _/and/_ sent to Sunnydale," Xander said impressed. "This guy had to be seriously bad news."

"Indeed," Giles answered. "He performed rituals with virgin sacrifices, summoned demons, and many more things. It is said he wrote all his secrets down in a book - which happened to be the one stolen from the Sunnydale museum two weeks ago. They say it contains many dark magics and rituals, but written in an unbreakable code."

Willow was the one who ventured nervously, "Rituals? Like the ones you need to open Hellmouths and stuff like that?"

"Yeah," Buffy spoke dejectedly, "and I suppose with them stealing from the tomb, they found a way to translate the code."

Giles placed the book he was holding down on the table, sighed, and said, "Exactly. It is said he created a cross, the Du Lac Cross. It was designed so one could decipher texts and take hidden meanings from them. All but the one buried with him was destroyed. Which means we got to find out what's in that book before the vampires do. This will be an all night research session."

"Hey!" Willow called out in annoyance, "Xander and I were supposed to be going on the repeat date tonight. I wanted him to go as Lexa even, test out female - female date!" Willow pointed out.

"I'm sorry," Giles said, as Xander was about to say something.

Buffy though stopped him, as she started speaking while slowly backing away, "Well, I can't. I still have homework from my law enforcement booth, my mom wants me to do the dishes, and even vacuum the house while she's away. And I'm not good with books anyway, you guys are much better than that. Right, Willow?" Buffy gave a open-mouth Willow a look, and then turned around.

"Hold it right there," Willow spoke dangerously, several sparks of energy flowing around her, and a splash of water landing right in front of Buffy. The Slayer's reflexes made it so she wasn't wet again, turning around rapidly, looking at her best friend. The witch said in no uncertain terms, "If we're not going on a date, you're not going on a date with Angel."

"Willow," Buffy whined with disappointment. She noticed Xander's dark look, and winced.

"Buffy," Giles spoke with a little disappointment, and heard giggling coming from Jenny. He looked over, and she quickly ducked back into her book.

"Come on," the Slayer whined again. "I'm really bad at researching anyway, must be a Slayer thing."

"But you go on the donut runs that provide the necessary sugars to get the Xan-man's super research mind the proper stimulation," Xander pointed out with a grin, making the Slayer pout.

Willow tried again, "Please, Giles. Just one uninterrupted date with Xander. We'll research till the time to comes to leave, we'll come back right after. Those few hours and a translated book can't possibly be the end of the world. Look how strong we are together, especially if we ask Deo to come along and help fight, she did agree to that - despite her annoying . . ." Willow trailed of.

Before Giles could explain the danger of what might be in that book, Xander spoke up, "Yeah. Besides, can't you find two other suckers to fill in for us while we're gone?"

"Nihau!"

The Slayerettes turned as one to the door, where Lotion entered followed close behind by Cordelia. The cheerleader told the Amazon, "Can't you quit using that annoying word?" She folded her arms across her ample chest.

"I don't ask you to stop doing those annoying cheers at sports games, do I?" Lotion returned just as snidely. "I respect your culture, even though I despise it." Cordelia's eyes narrowed at the other girl.

Buffy watched it happen with a shiver of delight, happiness, hope, fear and a tinge of jealousy. After a moment of taking in the two new arrivals Xander and Willow turned back toward each other. Just one moment of silent communication with their eyes showed they were already on the same page, and then sweet, yet evil smiles lit up their faces. Smiling still, they turned back to the new arrivals.

"What?" Cordelia asked noticing the smiles she most definitely did not like. Lotion looked behind her confused for a moment, and turned back just as Cordelia repeated a bit more forcefully, "What?"

-----

The bus stopped at the bus stop. The door opened, and up front came a powerful-looking man, with scars in his face, and long, black hair. A white sleeveless shirt, having only straps adorned his torso. His left eye was gone, a scar running across it. He looked around for just a moment, and walked off.

-----

The man wore a drab brown suit, he was bolding and small. He carried a suitcase, and with a thin smile he walked through Buffy's neighborhood. Soon he found Buffy's house, and took it in for a moment, the wind lovely breezed through the tree in the front garden. Then he turned to his right and walked up the drive way of the house opposite of Buffy's. He rung the bell, and a moment later an older, thickly-set woman with curls opened. "We don't buy at the door," she bit out at the man.

The man just smiled, and said, "Can I interest you in some free samples?"

"Free?" she said. A few moments later he walked in, and once the door closed, the woman shrieked out a final scream.

-----

Powerful arcs of electricity, almost lightning bolts in there right, arched around the thick electric wires that lead electricity from a far off electric plant. Once the arcs reached the edge town, they crunched together and shot down to the floor. A cloud of electricity formed, electric bolts sizzling around and out; a vague outline that looked just a bit like a face formed higher up in the electricity. The only material thing, a odd glistening metal object swirling about. Then it shot underground, and into Sunnydale, the gliding along on the ground.

-----

A speed boat surreptitiously entered Sunnydale's harbor. Inside sat a woman with an amazing figure. Blonde hair flowed above the thin white vest that showed off her breasts and offered plenty of cleavage. It didn't even reach her belly button. Her clothes continued with a short black skirt that barely reached her thighs. Dark green boots finished her outfit. She picked up several bags, put them over her shoulder, and stepped out of the boat, walking onward with sure steps.

-----

The plane smoothly landed on Sunnydale airport and taxied to its spot. A little while later a airport attendant drove up to the belly of the plane in a cart. He opened the cargo compartment, and read off of a clipboard with a piece of paper. From the corner of his eyes he noticed a shadow moving. He frowned, and went into the cargo hold. "Hey!" he called out loud as he moved deeper into the hold. "Anyone in here?" He thought he saw another moved and turned to his left, walking towards the many suitcases and other cargo. "Nobody is allowed in here!" he called out.

A moment later he was clobbered, and beaten. He gives one last groan, before sinking to the ground. A moment later an exotic girl in a red tight pants, heavy makeup, earrings, and a black top with long sleeves. It stopped right beneath her breasts, and the round collar of the top, made a sharp, narrow downward slit in the middle, stopping only just low enough to show glimpses off her cleavages. Carefully she looked around for others, and then quickly slunk away.

-----

The sexy black-haired girl smiled sweetly at the man in the red sports car, as he drove his car into Sunnydale and aimed at the nearest motel. Parked, he told her, "Wait here, I'll be right back."

Indeed, a short while later he arrived with some keys, and the two entered a room. Once the door was closed he started kissing her almost desperately. He pulled her toward the bed, and she started kissing down his neck. Suddenly her eyes opened, turning to slits, but he couldn't see that. Large fangs slid down from her lips, and with a quick motion struck into his neck. He gasped, and then gave a yell, pulling away easily. He jerked back, falling on his ass onto the bed, having grabbed his neck. He pulled it, seeing blood on his hand. He looked at the beautiful girl, who smoothly gained scales, the legs disappearing. The body elongated, becoming smoother, uncoiling, her head turned into a large flat one, a forked tongue flicked out once, looking at him.

Fear gripped him, and he tried to move, but he started convulsing. With ever greater terror in his eyes he tried to wiggle away, but he moved less and less. Falling onto his back on the bed, he went into shuddering convulsions. Finally he lay still, a flow of drool from his mouth. His eyes were still wide open though - terror written in them. The snake quickly felt the man's pockets, removing his keys. Then its jaw opened, wider and wider, and engulfed the man's lower legs. The snake gulped, taking move of the man inside if its body. Once the feet and lower legs were passed the head, powerful muscles in the snake body contracted, and the man's bones crushed audibly. In the man's eyes, there was unfathomable pain and terror.

An hour later, the snake was finished eating the man. Once again it morphed, soon after having gained the man's appearance. Smilingly it tossed the car keys up, and caught them, before exiting the motel room.

-----

The sand rippled and shuffled at the edge of Sunnydale. First a few small points emerged, but they grew ever larger until a two meter tall porcupine stood there. Except its eyes glowed green, and it stood on its hind legs. Its stings were easily over a meter long. It sniffed and snorted, and then hurried toward a sewer entrance. It opened it, pushed its stings flat, and entered the sewer.

-----

The LA police helicopter landed smoothly in the middle of a clearing in the woods on the mountains at the south of Sunnydale. A red-skinned demon in a long brown cloak stepped out of it. Its yellow, narrow eyes were ominous. Its muscled body deadly. The lower and upper fangs coming over the lips even more so. Its green hair hung gently down its face. It took a look at the policeman pilot and the other two police occupants. They looked slackly ahead, only the pilot was a bit more alert, since it had to fly. The demon made a flick with its finger, and the pilot nodded. Then the helicopter lifted off again, flying away. The demon turned to Sunnydale and started walking.

-----

Smoothly the car drove into Sunnydale. Inside sat a woman, black hair, black skin tight, easy to move in outfit. The outfit had multiple sheaths, for daggers, knives, swords, two of them on her back. She was casually polishing one sword, as she drove and steered with her feet alone.

-----

Buffy glided smoothly across the ice. Her skates moved perfectly as she prepared, and jumped. She swivelled through the air perfect, and landed . . . she felt herself losing balance, and then went down. Sliding on her ass over the ice till she landed at the boards surrounding the ice rink. Dang; she realized Slayer agility was not built for ice. Her instinctive attempt at keeping balance had produced the exact opposite, and she knew it too. Her trainer once made her train to not do what she just did to try and keep her balance - it was the wrong thing to do on ice. She had gotten rid of the impulse, but now it was back, which must have come from her Slayer activation.

An arm reached from above her, and wrapped around her just under her head. She smiled, saying, "Angel." Suddenly she was yanked up, and a second arm wrapped around her, now around her neck, the first hand joined and they squeezed. Behind her was the long-haired man who had come with the bus. Buffy panicked as she noticed her attempts at dislodging the impossibly strong hands were useless. She kicked, attempted to gasp for breath, but all was useless.

"Buffy!" a voice called out that she recognized instantly: Angel. A few moments later the souled vampire smashed into the man squeezing the life out of her, and he let go. Coughing for air Buffy slumped back down to the ice.

Behind her a vamped out Angel smashed his fist across the man's face, but other than a quick movement with his head, it had no effect. The return punch from the man however, made Angel stagger back. Angel attacked again, with a flurry of blows; after the third however, the man grabbed Angel's wrist, smashed his own powerful fist into Angel's stomach, and lifted the vampire up. He tossed Angel painfully against the wall, and then rammed his foot into Angel's face. Fed up with the distraction, the assassin turned around and walked back toward the ice rink, walking onto the ice through an opening in the surrounding boards without fear.

Buffy had just scrambled up from her position, and landed a solid blow on the assassin who shrugged it off, and bashed Buffy over her cheek. She stumbled sideways, grunting in pain, and this time didn't make the same mistake as earlier. She stayed standing and quickly skated off, making a quick circle and coming back at the assassin. Her right foot whipped out, and the skate crashed into the assassin's throat. The man grabbed his own throat, gurgling as blood streamed from it. Buffy already skated onward to where Angel rose from his position. A moment later the assassin sunk to his knees, and then fell over, the ice staining red with his blood.

"Are you all right?" Buffy asked concerned, holding Angel. The vampire tried to turn away, but Buffy pulled his face back. "You're eye," she said concerned as she noticed a gash on Angel's vamped out brow. He turned away again. "I didn't know you were a crybaby," Buffy said, pulling his face back yet again.

"It's not that," Angel told her. "You shouldn't have to see me when I'm like this."

Buffy smiled, and pulled him back, then placed a kiss on his vamped-out brow. "It doesn't bother me," she said gently. Then she leaned forward, and kissed Angel fully on the mouth.

In the back of the ice rink, an exotic girl appeared, took in the vampire couple kissing, and then slowly snuck out.

Back on the ice, Buffy and Angel slowly slid apart, her heart beating in her chest. Was it possible to love more than one person, Buffy wondered. The kiss was odd, sure, his skin cool. So very different from the burning hot, seemingly feverish lips with Xander. But the kiss was pretty nice after all. Angel was nervous, and to cover it up he went over to the dead assassin. He shrank down and turned him over. "The corpse is more fascinating than the kiss?" Buffy asked slightly miffed, slightly amused.

"Uh, no-no, of- . . ." Angel's eyes fell on the ring on the assassin's right ring finger, and he immediately stopped talking.

"What?" Buffy asked not understanding.

"Buffy," Angel said with dread as he took the ring off of the man's finger, "do yo know what this is?"

"Uh . . . Super bowl championship ring?" she guessed.

Angel looked up at her, and got up. "No, it's a ring warn by the member of the Order of Teraka; an assassins guild."

"So? He's dead," Buffy said, pointing at the corpse.

"There will be others," Angel spoke fearfully.

-----

Willow had her arms wrapped around Lexa's bare midriff. She was pushed against the wall, while Lexa was feverishly kissing her. Both were in short skirts, and sexy tops, and were obviously enjoying it on each other. They broke apart, and Lexa looked down at Willow, a little hint of guilt in her eyes. Willow smiled broadly, looking up, and whispered, "I definitely like girl-girl kisses."

"Hmm, me to," Xander as Lexa. Willow placed her head against the taller girl's shoulder, partly on her breasts, and just took in the empty street and the houses around them. The small strip of the moon above gave a romantic notion to the event, but not quite.

"We should have kept our hands off of each other till we reached the beach," Willow said with a smile.

"Y-you know thi-this is not- . . ." Lexa started guiltily, still feeling the love for Buffy, and some for Lotion and hating putting the girls in this position - of course, they had put themselves in the position he reasoned, but that didn't quench that little voice of guilt.

Willow put her finger on his mouth to shush him, saying gently, "I know, you haven't made up your mind yet. Don't worry, I won't take anything as a commitment except sex or a ring . . ." Lexa was about to point something out. Willow quickly added, "Buffy doesn't count, she screwed up what she could have had on her very own."

Willow looked up into Lexa's face, imprinting it in her. So much like Xander, and yet so different, both sides were equally thrilling, equally sexy, equally heroic. The possibilities were dizzying - she so immensely hoped the double gender exchange artist would be hers someday soon. As she thus looked up, she saw something. She quickly looked alongside Lexa, far in the difference, some hundred or so meters, on a low roof of a house. Blonde hair just visible over the top, glistening in the moonlight, and a some flickering light. Willow's eyes widened, immediately grateful for all the times Xander and Jesse made her watch action movies with them. "XANDER!" she screeched in fear, pointing. At the same time three streetlights exploded.

Lexa whirled around, instantly tossing aside the pleasant haze of the kiss. Her right hand shot out . . . and caught a long steel-tipped arrow right from the air. As he focused on the shooter in the difference, he twirled the arrow absentmindedly angrily taking several steps toward the party pooper.

The blonde in the distance looked up from her scope, the crossbow she had used casually in her hands. Two more arrows were on it, and it smoothly slid into place, as she said, "Interesting."

Lexa stopped as she reached the middle of the road. The same thing that drew his attention to his left, drew the female shooter's attention away, as well as Willow's. There was a sizzle, and a flash of light. Looking toward it, all three saw the mass of electricity and plasma float up from the street, forming a two meter high and one and a half meter wide cloud, having a face-like appearance in the middle.

"What the hell?" Lexa muttered, and then some electricity came forward, pointing toward her. She took a step back, examining the strange thing. Suddenly a burst of electricity shot from the outstretched limb-like mass of electricity, and struck Lexa square in the chest. "AAH!" she screamed out, instinctively raising whatever chi she could gather to protect herself, but it wasn't enough to keep from being launched backward. Eventually she reached the corner of the street, slammed with her lower back against the fire hydrant standing there, and fell over it backward, legs in the air.

**"-XANDER!-"** Willow screamed out in fear and pain at the possibilities, losing all control. Energy whipped and boiled around her in an instant, every window in a fifty meter radius exploded outward, showering everything in shards of glass. "You will pay!" Willow growled out at the cloud of electricity, its face turned toward her, a vaguely surprised expression on it. "AAAAH!" Willow yelled out, firing energy balls from her hands without even knowing how to do it; the poles of the streetlights groaned then folded. The metal was squeezed all over and they were bent in multiple directions, many sticking out almost horizontally.

The energy balls though, hit the creature, and evaporated in it. It pointed at Willow as it pointed at Xander and another burst of electricity shot out. It penetrated Willow's chi and magic seemingly easily, slammed in her chest the same way, and flung her backward, smashing into the wall. Groaning with pain, and her face crunched up, she sank to the floor. Slumping into unconsciousness, her energy bleeding away. A few more tendrils of electricity sizzled around and in her body, making it jerk.

The cloud of electricity took in a job well done, and prepared to disappear back into the ground. "Hey, you!" a female voice called out, and the electricity creature turned back, taking in the female form of Xander, who .

"Astounding," the electric creature spoke with a crackling voice as it floated toward Lexa, "I was surprised enough I saw you turn into a female when I observed you earlier; but I still didn't believe my employer's claims of your power. You're only the third human to survive one of my electric bolts, and is still able to stand."

Lexa sneered at creature coming ever closer, telling it, "We have a saying, 'Come to momma, you piece of shit'." Lexa grabbed the fire hydrant, twisted it partially, and bashed off one of the hose connection. A big powerful jet of water shot out, and doused the cloud of electricity in water.

"NOO!" the thing screamed in pain, its electricity shooting out through the water in all directions. Bolts flew up, and down, many smashing back into its 'body', as water burst through it, tearing at its innards. The electricity short-circuited, long-circuited, crackled about and more, until it finally died away. Xander quickly ran passed the large jet when he realized his plan had succeeded. Coming closer to window he looked back up to the roof, but the blond sniper was gone. He quickly knelt down next to Willow, and put his hand on her chest.

"Willow?" he asked with painful concern. He sighed relieved when he felt a strong, but slightly irregular pulse. The irregularity steadily became less, and she started wiping some pieces of glass off of Willow. The witch groaned then, and opened her eyes. She looked in Lexa's face, and wrapped her arms immediately around her neck. "You're okay," she whispered happily, and gave a happy sob.

They hugged, and then their attention was drawn by a sound. They looked toward the spray of water, and saw a small metallic object being dragged along across the asphalt by the flow of water. They got up, walked over and Lexa picked up the object, which turned out to be a ring. As the spray of water started to die down, Willow muttered angrily, "First Deo, now a sniper and an electric demon." Then she looked sadly up at Lexa, and whimpered, "Why can't we have just one complete date?"

"We're having one," Lexa said, slung her arm around Willow's shoulders and after putting the ring in a pocket started to walk. "The ring can wait, Giles is busy with the Du Lac stuff anyway. We go to my place, enjoy the ocean view, take a nightcap and then go to Giles. What do you say?" Willow nodded happily.

-----

Lotion sighed as she put away another magic book. Once again she had found nothing of interest. Across from her sat Cordelia, reading as well, and Giles was behind another table. Jenny had gone out, saying she had an errand to run. Lotion complained, "I can't believe we're here sitting and reading, while the Slayer, Xander and Willow are out on dates."

Cordelia looked up. She glared at lotion, saying, "Do I _/look/_ like I need to hear that?" Xander and Willow were frighteningly efficient team that she would never underestimate again. Ten years of experience with each other, they had laid a string of arguments and the occasional guilt trip upon them, never letting Cordelia or Lotion get a word in. At the end, when they had said half of the first letter of respectively 'yes' and 'okay', the two were already out the door, dragging Buffy along.

"I'm just saying," Lotion returned a little gruffly, and went to grab a new book.

There was a roar and a crash. The large porcupine demon came straight through the wooden floor of the library, and peered at Lotion. The three humans present, looked with surprise at the intrusion. It turned around, and shot a contingent of its spines at the two girls. The spines grew back almost instantaneously. Lotion having faster reflexes jumped forward, tackling Cordelia including chair to the ground. The spines sailed just past and embedded in multiple places in the library, including . . .

"Those are books!" Giles shouted in horror, before diving toward the weapons cage.

The demon ignored Giles and advanced on the girls. Lotions gritted her teeth as she got up, taking in the spines on the demon's back and arms. More spines shot out from its arms, and Lotion somersaulted backward, as Cordelia dove under the table to avoid the new spines. Lotion landed on a pillar, and jumped forward, slamming her foot in the demon. The demon stumbled back a bit, blocked her follow up punch, and bashed her aside with one of his own. Lotion kept herself from falling to the ground, and charged forward again, not being able to hit the demon anywhere than on full frontal where there were no spines.

Her first punch missed barely, her second was blocked while she blocked the monster's. Immediately after she hit it in the stomach, making it double over. It whipped its right hand out, catching her across the chin, and pulled back. The spines on the arm raked over Lotion's face, scratching her open. "Aah!" she hissed, and kicked out, slamming into the demon's gut. It grunted and jumped forward, twisting around and fired a new round. Lotion jumped high into the air, making a screw flowing into a somersault. "Sword!" she ordered as she jumped again. Giles had just retrieved two swords, and tossed one of them, aiming just above Lotion.

As Lotion came down she grabbed the sword and sliced it down. The demon put up his spines on his arms, and caught the sword against it, blocking it. Lotion grunted in frustration, making a quick backward motion. The demon fired another load of spines from his arm, one of which Lotion stopped using her sword as a shield. The others passed her, and Lotion jumped forward again, slicing the sword underneath the demon's arms. Grunting with effort she missed, and pulled the sword back before the demon's slam downward would have either destroyed it, or made her drop it. The demon came up, and the Amazon kicked the demon's head further away. Rapidly she moved into the demon's guard, and stuck her sword into its belly. The demon howled painfully as green blood oozed from its wound, and Lotion quickly pulled back, finishing up with a rapid horizontal strike. A moment later the demon's head came off, and bounced on the floor exactly once. "Die already," Lotion told the dead demon. A moment later it dissolved in a spectacular glowing goo, which quickly disappeared as well. Only a small object was spared the demon's fate, it dropped to the ground and stayed still there.

Lotion looked confused, went over and picked up the ring. "Mr. Giles, any idea what this is?"

-----

Jenny had hid her feline nature in a hooded robe, along with the darkness of night, nobody would really notice. She knocked on the door to Lotion and Deo's home. The door was at the side of the building that housed the restaurant. A few moments later the Amazon opened the door, and before she could say anything Jenny stepped inside.

Deo looked amused as she closed the door, and then a little surprised as she saw Jenny take off her hood. "So the witch got to you too, huh?" Deo questioned.

"I cannot believe you are this irresponsible," Jenny hissed at the Amazon, her whiskers twitching with anger.

Deo shrugged and walked passed the cat-woman, not really caring about her objections. Both of them walked further onward, into the small kitchen, and Deo asked much too politely, "Coffee?"

Jenny growled as she grabbed the amazon's shoulder and yanked her around so she faced her. "You're playing with lives, Deo," Jenny growled out in a feline manner.

Deo smiled coolly, and said, "She can't harm anyone, and your transformations are not permanent. All she has to do is request me to disrupt the technique, and remove any claims on my future son in law, and the problem will be solved."

"Not directly," Jenny corrected angrily. "Tell me what you did, and how I can reverses it."

"No," Deo stated with resolution.

A growl came from Jenny's throat, and lashed out with her close, long nails shooting out the tips. Deo smoothly grabbed her by the wrist, and pulled her over her shoulder. Jenny landed with a smack against the counter. Growling cat-Jenny stood up, and realizing she couldn't defeat the Amazon, hissed, "_/This/_ is _/not/_ a game."

Deo took two steps forward and grabbed Jenny by her collar tightly, growling back. "You _/think/_ I treat this as a _/game/_? My daughter's honor, my daughter's future, and my daughter's happiness is _/not/_ a game to me. She _/will/_ marry Xander Harris if I have anything to say about it. I love my husband, and I'm happy with him - most of the time. There are times when I'm frustrated with him, wished he had more of a backbone, wished he dared talk back to me. Just wished for once he initiated the sex. My daughter can have that; and I will do anything in my power to make sure she does."

"Reverse it, before people get hurt, or worse," Jenny said one final time, but knew what the Amazon's answer would be.

The doorbell rang, and Deo let go of Jenny. The cat-woman trailed behind in defeat as Deo went through the narrow hallway to the door. The Amazon opened it, and there stood a tall imposing red demon. Deo was surprised for a moment, and the demon's golden eyes glowed. "Go to your daughter, and kill her," the demon spoke almost bored. "Then kill the rest and finally yourself."

Deo dazedly nodded, as the demon looked up, and casually looked at Jenny's silhouette in the door opening to the kitchen. "You stay here," the demon said, still bored. Its eyes widened when a throaty, feline growl came from the human he had dismissed as unimportant earlier. Perhaps he should have looked better. Jenny crouched as Deo started to walk forward, her eyes flashed as the light of the moon fell just fell on her eyes. "What the?" the demon muttered in surprise as Jenny suddenly ran forward, half on her hind legs, half on all fours. With a hiss Jenny jumped over Deo and slashed at the demon. The demon rapidly stepped back, raising his cloak, saving his torso from being scratched open, instead his cloak was ruined.

The demon rapidly walked backwards, and Jenny jumped out of the house. In the alley, she hissed, her tail up and her hairs straight up like a house cat. "I'm going to rip you apart," Jenny growled out.

"Stay back, you bitch!" the demon said in anger and a little fear. Jenny jumped, attacking once more. The demon brought its fist forward, but Jenny just bit into it with her fangs, holding onto the bigger demon. Screaming in pain, the demon shook his hand, and kicked at Jenny. It hit, and with a painful growl Jenny let go of the arm, falling backward. She ignored the pain, and got up, ran forward. She through a punch that the demon clumsily blocked, and flung a fist with his other one. It slammed in Jenny's chin, but she shrugged it off. Her smaller size allowed her to easily duck underneath his next punch, and she jumped forward landing one in his stomach. The demon coughed, and Jenny made a jumping uppercut, but not with her fist, with her opened claws. A loud scream of pain tore from the demon's throat, and behind the two, Deo shuddered to a stand still. As yellow blood started to ooze from the demon's wounds, Deo shook her head to clear it and Jenny came down with her claws. The demon backed away, but her left claw still grazed his shoulder.

Grimacing, the demon kicked out viciously, and hit Jenny in her chest. The cat-woman was sent flying backward, and the demon quickly turned around and ran.

Jenny got up, and for a moment considered going after the fleeing demon, but then turned around and went back to Deo. "You okay? What was that?" Jenny asked the Amazon.

"It controlled my mind, somehow," the Amazon told her.

"Why not mine?" Jenny wondered.

Deo shook her head, and said, "I don't know, perhaps it can't do it with more than one person."

"I suggest we get to the resident demon expert and ask," Jenny told the Amazon, and she agreed readily. Deo was pretty sure she wouldn't have been able to shrug off the control when facing her daughter, but she didn't want to not have an option if she was wrong.

-----

In Spike's and Drusilla's hideouts, Drusilla turned over one card, then a second above it, and finally a third in the upper corner. "Ooh, three down, six left," Drusilla sang out. "You were right, Spike, three wasn't enough. Such good fighters we face, but the stars are still in our favor, Miss Edith says."

"Good," Spike said with a grin. "Succeed or not, it'll keep the bloody white hats busy till it's far too late. Well, Dalton?"

Dalton was translating the final passage using the golden cross. "I got it!" he said and handed over the paper.

"Oh, bloody brilliant, all this time looking . . ." Spike trailed off with a smile.

Drusilla finished for him, "and it was right beneath our entrails."

-----

The door to Xander's apartment opened smoothly, and Lexa and Willow entered the place, sharing a kiss. Lexa closed the door behind them, and then they took in the lovely centered living room, and the ocean view through the windows, and past the balcony behind it.

"Hmm," Willow muttered, and then looked up in Lexa's eyes. "I gotta go the bathroom."

"I'll get us some root beers," Lexa said with a smile. Willow smiled back and went to the bathroom.

Lexa circled the counter, entering the kitchen. She pulled out two glasses and poured root beer in it. Then she went to the table in the middle and placed the glasses down. The building bell rang, and Lexa frowned. Who could it be at this hour? She went over and pushed the intercom. "Hello?"

#Hey, Lexa, it's Buffy,# sounded through the machine.

"Oh, hey," Lexa said, a little disappointed at another interruption, but it had to be important. He opened the outside door with a push of the button, while saying, "You can just use the key I gave you, you know."

#Don't have it with me,# Buffy answered, and Lexa nodded. A few moments later the doorbell of Xander's apartment rang, and she opened the door.

"Hey, Buffy," Lexa said and stepped aside. Buffy took the non-explicit invitation, and walked in.

"I'm sorry to barge in like this," Buffy said, her hips swaying sexily as she walked toward the couch. Lexa was close behind, unable to keep himself from checking out the Slayer's ass wrapped in a tight black skirt.

-Damn,- she thought, -Angel is one lucky son of a bitch. The date!- Lexa walked close behind Buffy, asking, "Didn't your date go well?"

Buffy seductively turned around, her eyes teared up a bit. "No," she whimpered, eyes slightly teary, "that is, I just realized he's not for me. I made such a big mistake Xander." Lexa was drawn to Buffy's big, blue, sad eyes. The Slayer wrapped her arms around Lexa, and gently maneuvered him down to the couch, telling her, "I'm for you, even with the gender switching, I'll adapt."

"R-really?" Lexa said dreamily, a pang of guilt for Willow as she let herself slip down in Buffy's embrace. Her eyes were so mesmerizing. Lexa knew Buffy's eyes were a powerful weapon on the weak minded, but she never considered this. Buffy's lips touch touched Lexa's, and they kissed, making Lexa groan. Buffy slowly started kissing down Lexa's chin toward her neck. Lexa closed her eyes with the pleasure of the fluttering kisses.

The toilet flushed, and a moment later Willow came out. As she tucked her top back in her skirt she asked absentmindedly, "Who was that, Lexa?" Willow looked up, and a moment of pure jealousy raged through her when she saw Buffy kissing Lexa down her neck. The jealousy disappeared with one shocking thought raced through Willow's mind, -Since when does Buffy have giant fangs!-

**"-GET OFF HER!-"** Willow screamed out, waving her hand at the female figure. Everything seemed to explode. The Buffy-like figure was blasted off of Xander, crashing through the already exploding windows as her shape twitched in pain and reverted to a much more snake like appearance. Then it fell down behind the balcony and was out of sight. Water came exploding from the faucet, spraying the apartment. The glasses shattered, making the root beer spill. A fire flame of anger surrounded Willow and flashed around the room for a moment, heating the water from the fountain. The couches and chairs were flung in all directions, crashing against the walls and falling down - luckily not broken. Lexa was pushed upward as the couch she was on flew away. The warm water reverted her back to Xander, and he painfully landed on his butt, making him groan out loud.

Willow rapidly walked out on the balcony and looked down. The man-sized cobra with arms looked up at her, slitted eyes narrowing with anger and annoyance. Then the shape coiled back in, and a moment later the snake was a man, whose gaze lingered on the astonished Willow for one more moment. Then he ran off.

"Ow, what hit me?" Xander groaned out, slowly getting up, looking a little comical in a skirt and top, but Willow's concerns didn't even notice it.

"Are you okay? Did it hurt you? Did I hurt you?" Willow whimpered hopefully.

"No, I'm fine; oh, god, Will, what happened?" he said, looking around, and then everything rushed back. "Will, when I'm on a date with you, I wouldn't kiss some other girl, even if it was Buffy; there was something about her eyes . . . where did she go?"

"It was a Cobra snake demon, Xander," Willow whispered, a sob coming from her as the emotions and adrenaline drained from her system. "It ran off as a man in a business suit, it could change its shape; I guess it can hypnotize with its eyes too."

Xander blinked, and then reached underneath his skirt, pulling out the ring from under her panties where he had stashed it. "I guess this can't wait after all," Xander said holding up the ring. The two looked at each other sadly. "I'll go put on something male, and then we go to the library," he said, and Willow nodded sadly.

-----

Buffy barged into the library, saying, "Giles, we've got- . . . whoa." She looked around the mess that the porcupine demon left; and Lotion wearing very satisfied grin, casually stretching - like the cat that ate the canary. Giles was bent over a book, holding something shiny in his hand. Cordelia was looking through another book.

As Giles got up to look at Buffy, she heard him mutter, "I've seen it before, where have seen it before?" Then he said out loud, "Buffy?"

"Giles," Buffy send and quickly jumped down to the lowest level and walked to the table at which he stood. She put the ring on the table and said, "Some seriously strong bastard wearing that ring tried to kill me . . ." Buffy's eyes widened as she now took a better look at what Giles was holding: another ring the same one. Subdued she continued, looking back at the smiling Lotion, "I see there was a visitor here for me as well. Angel was freaked Giles, said the ring belonged to something called the Order of Tenaka."

"Order of Teraka, oh dear god," Giles spoke out loud.

"I hate it when he says that, don't you, Will?" Xander's voice sounded, and the occupants of the library looked back to see him and Willow standing just inside the library. Willow nodded vigorously, and Xander punted something from his hand with his thumb. It sailed through the air, and Giles caught it. Holding it up, they could see another ring, the same one. "I took that off of a electric demon I killed by spraying it with water," Xander explained, making Buffy's eyes widen in shock. "There was a sniper with a crossbow, that got interrupted by the electric demon, then at my apartment . . ." Xander looked at Willow.

"It was a shape shifting snake demon, about five meters long body I think, came at Xander as Buffy," Willow added hurriedly.

"Then they aren't just coming for Buffy," Cordelia observed from her position at a table.

Buffy blinked, and dreading guessed, "What? Me, Xander, and . . ."

"Lotion," spoke Jenny. Giles, Buffy, Cordelia and Lotion turned around, to watch Deo and Jenny walk in from the book cases - obviously having snuck in through the back door. "A demon took Deo's mind under its control and I heard it order her to kill her daughter. I chased it away, for some reason it couldn't control me."

"O-okay," Buffy said, her voice wavering a bit as she attempted to gain control of the situation. "We just find these bastards, how many are there?"

"Nine at least," Willow spoke always the mathematician. "Xander had three different ones after him, we can assume that means each one of you has at least three as well, making nine."

"That makes at least six remaining," Giles added with a concerned frown. "Each one of you has killed one of them, we've seen another three, which means that there are at least three more of which we have no idea what they look like, or what there abilities are, one more that can change shape, and one that possibly has enough mind control ability to make you not see him . . . this is bad." He looked up, and said, "I have a book on the Order somewhere here. We should look if the assassins you've seen are already known, and whether they have weaknesses we can exploit, but . . ."

"Great!" Buffy said, with hope. "Three down, six to go, time to kick some ass."

"Buffy," Giles said, deeply concerned. "This is not going to be that easy. The Order of Teraka is a deadly order that dates back to the time of King Solomon."

"And didn't they beat the Elks this year in the Sunnydale adult bowling championship?" Xander wondered walking down the few steps, making everyone frown at him.

Giles continued, "Their credo is to sow discord and kill the unwary."

"Bowling is a vicious game," Xander said with a grin.

"That's enough Xander!" Giles snapped, making Xander look up at him, and the others down. "This is no time for jokes."

"Personally, I think it's the perfect time for jokes," Xander said, surprising himself with his bold statement, and the others gave him a quick look.

Giles shook his head, and said, "I think you three should find a place out of the way to hide, at least until we've learned more."

"Wait," Buffy spoke up, with fearful look in her eyes. "Angel told me to head for the hills as well. What are you saying? That we can't handle this? That these guys are too much for us?"

Giles explained, "Buffy, the order is a breed apart. Unlike vampires, the assassins have no earthly desires except to collect their bounty." Willow and Cordelia look stricken, and Buffy just listens a little defeated. "They find the target, and . . . uh, eliminate it." Buffy takes a step back, and looks down. "You can kill as many of them as you'd like, it makes no difference. Where there is one, there is another, and another . . . they won't stop coming until the job is done." Xander tried to speak up, but this time Giles waltzed right over him, continuing, "Each on works alone, in his own way. Some are human, some are not, you won't know who they are until they strike."

"B-but . . ." Buffy said and then bolted out the library.

"Buffy!" Xander called out desperately.

But the Slayer was already out the door, muttering an inaudible final two words, "Y-you said . . ."

"Oh, that was brilliant, Giles," Xander muttered out bitterly, turning back. The girls looked up at the pissed Xander, a slight bit of hope returning if he wasn't defeated.

"Uh, I may have overdone it?" Giles asked.

Jenny crossed the distance between her and Giles, and slapping his arm said, "You think?"

"You're not even correct," Xander added with a little irritation. "What you described is putting a bounty on someone's head and bounty hunters come for the bounty. The Order are assassins, there's a difference. Assassins you pay up front, and they take out the target. They fail though, and you want more assassins to try, you'll have to put up more money before another one comes. Whoever hired the order, hired multiple assassins."

Giles looked a little sheepish, as Deo said, "He is very much correct."

"How do you know, Xander?" Lotion asked him.

Xander pointed at his head, "Halloween, soldier boy." He sighs, and walks to the door, "I'm going after her, hopefully I pick the right direction, and I'll catch up with her."

"Xander!" Cordelia called out, and he turned around, everyone looking at him. "Be careful."

"I can handle myself, don't worry. You guys find Du Lac, and the Terakans' weaknesses, I'll find Buffy," Xander said, and was out the door.

-----

Buffy had run aimlessly through the darkened streets of Sunnydale. She stopped, and cried. Tears streamed down her face. For only a few moments she had allowed herself to hope, hope for a better future, a long future, with her friends by her side; as Giles had said was possible. And now it was gone, just like that. A never ending train of Assassins would be coming for her and two of her friends - and sooner or later they'd succeed.

Buffy wanted to feel safe now; despite its impossibility. Have strong arms wrapped around her. She thought of Xander, but dismissed it. First he was most likely still back there, where she didn't want to be, and if he wasn't he was a target. Which made going to his apartment useless as well; if her assassins didn't track her there, Xander's would get her. Mom wasn't home, the rest was still back there . . . that left Angel. That was good! The vampire wouldn't be listed anywhere, good chance the assassins didn't know where he lived. Whether he was there or not, she'd be safe, at least for a little while. So, Buffy headed off toward his apartment.

-----

Xander arrived at Angel's apartment. He checked it out for a moment, looking for a way in. "Buffy?" Xander called out. "Buffy? Angel?" He shrugged, and easily kicked down the door. "Buffy!" he called again, quickly checking all the rooms - all empty. He gritted his teeth, closed the door behind him, and left.

-----

Not long after Buffy arrived there. She opened the door and entered, too distraught to wonder why the door was unlocked. Looking around, she called, "Angel? Angel?" There was no answer, so put herself down on his bed, and with tears leaking from her eyes, attempting to sleep.

-----

"We're closed!" Willy, the proprietor of the dingy bar called to the figure in the doorway.

"I'm not here for a drink, Willy," Angel said, and came inside the bar.

"Angel! Buddy! How have you been?" Willy called with a big grin.

Angel shortened the distance quickly, and hissed, "Spare me the theatrics, Willy. I want to know who hired them."

"Hired who?" Willy asked innocently.

Angel grabbed him by the throat and slammed him back on his own bar. "The Order of Teraka, obviously."

"Angel, friend, I swear I don't know. I went legal, no more funny business," Willy explained with a smile.

Angel squeezed his hand around the man's neck tighter, and said, "Willy, Willy. We don't really want to see how much I remember about torturing from my days as Angelus, do we?"

"Okay, okay, it's Spike!" Willow called out frightened.

"Why?" Angel asked dangerously.

Willy swallowed, and whimpered out, "I don't know, all I heard is something about a restoration ritual, that's it, I swear. Now you got to protect me, Spike'll kill me if he finds out I spilt."

Angel was about to offer a return when he was suddenly launched off of Willy with a painful impact. "Holy Mary," Willy muttered with drool as he saw who was his savior. Angel crashed off to the side against a wall, and ground out.

"Get out, leettle man," the exotic girl spoke with a heavy accent.

"Right, no problem, won't get in your way," Willy said and quickly ran out his bar.

Angel slowly got up, taking in the dark-skinned girl, and asked, "Who are you?"

"Your death," she spoke and rammed a right cross across Angel's face. He stumbled off to his right, and turned around to face her. Bad choice, because the girl was in the air and both her feet came flying at his chest.

"Aargh!" Angel groaned out as he was launched back, crashed through a half-closed door and tumbled down a short staircase, to land in the bar's dirty basement.

With effort he got back up, and saw the girl land in front of, jumping down the five steps in one bound. "I don't wish to hurt you," Angel tried one last time, but got a fist in his face for his effort. He vamped out, having had it, and attacked. He avoided her second hit, and slammed a fist in her face. To his surprise, the girl took it without much effort, only her face whipping to her left. He blocked her next punch, but got her rapid kick in his stomach. He stumbled back, moaning in pain, quickly collecting himself.

His centuries experience helped, as he managed to deflect the next right punch, and whipped around, slamming his foot in the side of her face, making her stumble backward, passing carrying beams, and into a section of the basement holding kegs with who knew what. The girl collected herself easily, and looked at Angel with a dangerous intensity. She jumped forward and twisted with a devastating roundhouse punch, that connected with Angel's face and made him stumble backward. Before he could do anything, the girl had already slammed her shoulder in his stomach, making him double over and tumble further back, directly at an opened door of a caged off section. A followup immensely powerful kick to his chest, made him stumbled backward all the way into the caged area.

Angel looked up from his position and got up readying to continue the fight, till he saw the cruel smile adorning the girl's face. She reached for the still opened, heavy steal-barred door. Angel's eyes widened and quickly jumped forward . . . the girl was faster though, and the door slammed shut. Angel slammed against the heavy bars that separated his section from the rest of the bars. He yanked at them, but it was all steel, too thick for even a vampire to budge; almost as if built for one.

The girl looked coolly at him, and asked, "De girl . . . de one I saw you weeth earleeur."

"Don't you dare hurt her, or I'll- . . ." Angel snarled, trying to grab her through the bars.

She interrupted him, "Den I suggest you hurree." She pointed up to her left with her eyes. Angel looked where she was pointed and saw a small barred window. "Eastern exposure," she told him with an even crueller smile, "dee sun weell be high enough in at most two ours." Angel locked shocked, and then she simply turned and walked away.

-----

"Willow, Cordelia," Giles called, and the two girls suddenly jerked awake.

"Don't wake the tadpoles," Willow called out, and then looked around confused.

Cordelia just looked around wide eyes, noticing Lotion rubbing sleep from her eyes, obviously just getting awake as well. Jenny was off to her left, the cat-woman oddly, or perhaps not so oddly quite alert. Next to her was Deo, gulping down large mouthfuls of most likely black coffee - strong black coffee.

"Giles, what are you doing here?" Willow asked the watcher, as Cordelia was still blinking the sleep from her eyes.

"You fell asleep during researching, you're in the library," Giles said with a smile.

"I'm sorry," she said.

"You don't have to, all you girls went well beyond the call of duty today," he said, looking around the sleepy girls. "Tadpoles?"

Before Willow could answer thought, both Lotion and Cordelia came to the same realization. "Xander isn't back yet?" they asked simultaneously, fearfully.

Giles shook his head, and said, "We figured out what's in the book though; there's a ritual to restore master vampires back to full health."

With wide eyes Willow asked, "Master vampires like Drusilla?" Giles nodded solemnly.

"Somebody should go looking for Xander," Jenny pointed out calmly. "And I should stay with Lotion; the demon with mind control, can't control cats."

"I'll go, I can take my car, and they're not after me," Cordelia said, and rose up. "That black coffee," she asked as she wobbled about. "What time is it anyway?" she asked, as Deo poured Cordelia easily a cup. Jenny glared at the Amazon with unmistakable hostility, Cordelia supposed the techno-pagan still hated the woman for not lifting the test off of Willow in this dire situation. Her yelling about it had kept her longer awake than she thought had been possible for her last night.

"About four o'clock in the morning, and somebody finding Xander is why I woke you," Giles said gravely. "The library is easily defendable, we should be here till we have a plan of attack."

As Cordelia finished her coffee and went for the exit, Lotion told her, "You better bring him back alive." Cordelia nodded once at the Amazon girl, and then left.

-----

Cordelia drove through Sunnydale, making several wrong guesses, but finally spotted Xander walking along the pavement. She slowed down next to him, and lowered her window with a touch of a button. "Hey Xander, anyone attack you?" Cordelia asked him with a relieved smile.

Xander turned to her, and give her a tired smile. "Apart from a couple of vamps, no," Xander answered her, and leaned on the door of her car, obviously tired.

"You haven't found her, you don't think?" Cordelia asked him with a little fear, surprising herself that she actually let Xander see she had come to care for the annoying, short blonde.

Xander smiled at her, telling her, "Hell, no, if Buffy was dead, we'd have know. She wouldn't go down without a fight big enough to level Sunnydale with the ground. But where she is I don't know, I don't know. I've looked everywhere, cemeteries, the Bronze, her house, even Angel's apartment."

"You went back to her house yet?" Cordelia asked him. Xander shook his head. "Then get in, dumbass, she could have gotten there after you checked, you know."

"Right," Xander said sleepily and slid across the hood of the car to get in next to Cordelia.

"God, you need coffee - hell, you probably need something stronger," Cordelia told Xander in no uncertain terms, and peeled off toward a slowly lightening horizon.

-----

They arrived at Buffy's home and got out of the car. Xander opened the door with his key, and called, "Buffy!" He went up the stairs, as Cordelia walked into the living room, checking the couches, but they weren't occupied.

Across the road, a man carrying a suitcase opened the door of the other house, and came walking over with a creepy smile. He banged the gold-colored knocker several times. Cordelia came over and opened the door.

"Hi, I'm Norman Phister, can I interest you in some free samples?" he asked with a big smile.

"Free?" Cordelia asked her face lighting up. Smiling the man stepped inside, and followed her to the living room. The man opens the briefcase with the samples, and casually looks around the living room, as Cordelia is like a kid in a candy store, taking out one piece of makeup after another. "How much is this? After I try it for free of course," Cordelia asked picking out a nice lipstick.

"Nine ninety-nine, tax included," Norman spoke in a completely even tone. "Say, are there any other ladies of the house?"

"Now, they're not at home right now," Cordelia answered, checking out some mascara. She looked up, and said, "And how much is- . . ." Cordelia swallows her choke as she notices a mealworm run along the man's cheek. He turns to look at her, just as Xander comes back down the stairs. He realizes she notices something.

"Buffy's not- . . . hey, who's this?" Xander asked confused.

"He's a nice businessman," Cordelia replied backing away toward Xander, "Who's just about to leave, right?"

The man turned, and smiled just a bit more, several more mealworms come crawling out of his sleeve. Xander noticed it, and also noticed the ring on the demon's finger. "Well, well, a bug Terakan assassin," Xander said, crackling his knuckles. "I've actually been looking forward to some payback on your kind." The assassin just looked a bit confused at this. Xander brought his right fist back, and threw a rapid, devastating punch - which simply passed straight through the assassin, who turned into a mass of mealworms at the impact. "What the?" Xander exclaimed, as Cordelia shrieked in fright and ickiness. Xander pulled his arm back and tossed some of the mealworms off of him, while the bug assassin already finished reconstituting himself. "Shit," Xander muttered, and tried again with a roundhouse kick, with the same result although there's less of the body left. "Run," Xander said, and pulled Cordelia along, heading for the kitchen. The cheerleader shrieked, and worse once more when they reach the kitchen and the bug assassin is already there waiting, just finished reforming there. A casual smile was on his face, which made him extra creepy.

Xander immediately reversed course, continuing to pull Cordelia along. He reached the hall and the stairs but the bug man is there waiting for them, making Cordelia shriek once more. In one move Xander twisted, picked up Cordelia, and put her in a fireman's carry. She looked completely dumbfounded at her sudden prone position. He grabbed the railing of the stairs and swung around it, kicking out his feet. He caught the assassin in his head, spraying some bugs along and landed at the bottom of the stairs. With one single bound he went all the way upstairs. Cordelia gave a horrified shriek, and yelled, "GET THEM OFF ME!"

Xander didn't listen. He went left and ran down the short hall, to the window at the end. "Sorry, Mrs. Summers," he said, and with one kick shattered the window and sent the frame flying out the house and down.

"Xander? What-?" That was as far as Cordelia came, when Xander put one foot on the lower edge of no longer window, and jumped high through the air. "AAAAH!" Cordelia screamed.

A moment later Xander landed on the roof of the next house, some ten meters away and two meters higher. He put Cordelia down and quickly wiped away the few mealworms that had managed to stick to her legs throughout the flight. Then he did the same with his own legs, after which he turned and looked down at Buffy's house. The assassin stood there, at the window, looking up at them with a cool, unreadable expression. Xander narrowed his eyes at him, and then put his arm around the waist of a still terrified Cordelia, who looked at the assassin as well. "Come on, Cor, let's get away from here," Xander said, and pulled her along. She ran along with him across the roof. His grip tightened when he reached the edge, and Cordelia tensed up with nervousness. The next moment he jumped and smoothly sailed through the air before he landed on the next house, at which point Cordelia learned to relax a little.

-----

Buffy lay sleeping in Angel's apartment, on his bed, which stood with the long side against a wall. Luckily for her, Slayers never slept tight, because when the wooden stake came down at her heart, she rolled up against the wall, making the exotic girl miss. With a rapid motion, Buffy crunched up, and twisted, bringing out her right foot, and kicking the stake out of the girl's hands. Holding on to the wall with her superior strength, she shot out her left foot and hit the girl in her stomach. She staggered back, and Buffy smoothly got to her feet.

"You must my number two," Buffy sneered at the girl, ruthlessly pushing her fear away. "I'm so gonna kick your ass." With a growl of frustration she attacked, throwing a punch which the dark-skinned girl deflected. The exotic one returned the punch, but Buffy ducked underneath it, immediately going into a leg sweep. With unnaturally fast reflexes, the exotic girl jumped over it, but Buffy sped up, twisting fulling around and coming back up, kicking out right in the other girl's stomach as she came down.

With a groan, the exotic girl was launched away from Buffy, he stalked after her quarry with an angry growl - fear starting to ebb away when she realized she could take this bitch. The exotic girl landed painfully on her ass, rolled back and jumped up in on smooth motion. She came at for another attack, throwing a powerful punch, which Buffy blocked with open palms at wrists, and pushed back. With grunt she twisted around, slammed her elbow across the girl's face, and followed it up with a knee to the gut. With the other girl bent over in pain, Buffy grabbed her neck, planning to twist the girl around and slam her on her knee. Instead the girl rapidly brought her right leg all the way up and over her head, slamming into Buffy's face, and making her stagger back. The dark-skinned girl made a short quick somersault using her momentum and a boost from her left leg, or else she would have fallen flat on her face.

With an grunt of effort from herself, Buffy's opponent attacked again, determined to kill Buffy. Buffy counterattacked exactly as the girl planned - throwing a high punch. "Rah!" she yelled as she ducked and rammed both her fists into Buffy's stomach. Buffy grunted and stagged one step back, to the girl's surprise, but she smoothly adjusted, ramming a left, right combo across Buffy's face. She followed up with a high kick that Buffy blocked with her left fore arm. Buffy rammed her right open palm on the other girl's stomach, making her stagger back and groan in pain. Not giving up, she stepped forward again, and made a rapid jab at Buffy's chest. Buffy twisted her upper torso, put her left arm on the girl's outer forearm in the same motion, and twisted the punch out of harm's way. Buffy grabbed the arm, and twisted it onward, and up as she said, "Three months ago . . ." Buffy rammed her right hand in the girl's stomach again, making her double over once more, but holding on to the girl's right arm, made it impossible for her to get away from Buffy. " . . . you could have beaten me," Buffy finished. "HAH!" Buffy yelled out, as her right arm moved upward, ramming the lower cushions of the palm in the girl's chin.

"Nng!" she yelled out with pain. Buffy followed up with rapid roundhouse kick that sent the exotic girl flying several meters away from her, crashing into one of Angel's low tables painfully, and rolling onward to the ground, groaning in pain.

"Now you're too late," Buffy hissed, jumping on the table and then down on the girl. She grabbed her arms and pinned them above high above the girl's head, while putting a knee down on her throat. "Now, Terakan bitch," Buffy said with an angry look, "tell me who hired you! You can send all the creepy crawlies . . ." Buffy paused and remembered the man whose throat she slit with her skit, then continued, "and not so creepy crawlies you got after me, but when you succeed, you can say bye bye to money, because a corpse won't pay much, now will it?"

The exotic girl was scared, but she didn't show it, her eyes darting around for a way to get out of this, while stalling the blonde on top of her. "Teraka? I not Teraka," she told Buffy.

"Ri-ight, and you were probably coming to give me a back rub," Buffy replied sarcastically, rolling her eyes.

"Check for dee reeng," the exotic one implored, while trying to find some leverage to kick Buffy off of her.

Buffy frowned, and looked up at the girl's restrained hands. Indeed, there was no Terakan ring on the girl's fingers. Buffy blinked, and looked down at the girl's determined face with confusion. "Okay," she said slowly, wheels almost audibly creaking in her brain. "Sooo, who are you if you're not a Terakan assassin?"

The girl debated for a moment whether it was wise to give her captor the truth, but then decided the reputation might help out. "I'm Kendra de Vampire Slayer," she told Buffy, whose eyes bugged out in surprise.

To Be Continued . . .

Author's notes:

Wow. I'm back it seems. After several slow weeks, slowed down even more when my mother went to the hospital, died Saturday two weeks ago, and I had to cremate her last Friday. The whole ordeal hurt like hell, was depressed quite a long time, and then yesterday . . . yesterday I read a story of Buffy going to her mother's grave meeting Xander there, called "Sometimes you can't make it on your own" by Lexie (aaalex55) over on the yahoo group BXfanfic. It hit me right in the heart, hurt like hell, and had me crying in no time. It's beautifully written, and I came out of it . . . the old me. The heavy heart is now gone. I started writing on something else first, but something told me I had to start writing more on this part and . . . shocker, it went like a smooth ride. (Thank you, Lexie!) Page after page came, and with it the heavy heart cleared up. There's still a bit lingering there, but . . . I feel like me again. Twenty+ pages in a session of just a few hours yesterday, and if I didn't get interrupted so much today by RL, I would have finished this most likely midday, another 13 pages onward. Ah, well, part of the section before those 30-something pages I struggled through, undoubtedly several attempts at humor failed miserably.

Give me feedback, as always please, also the bad parts, and the bad humor heavy heart is no excuse. I would prefer them of course to be constructive: how could I have done it better. Mail me here: 3d.masterchello.nl.


	20. part 20

----20---- 

"What?" Buffy asked from her superior position, down at Kendra.

"De Slayer, one girl in all- . . ." Kendra started.

Buffy interrupted her mightily pissed, "I know what the slayer is, bitch. _ /I/_ am the Slayer."

Buffy saw the momentary confusion in Kendra's eyes, but then returned, remarkably collected for a girl having a knee on her throat, "_/You/_ are de other Slayer? Dee one before me?"

Buffy blinked, took her in. "You can't be the other Slayer. She's in . . . uh . . . South America somewhere, and her name is . . ." Buffy spat out, frowning, trying to remember.

"Kendra, dat'd be me," Kendra replied.

Buffy kept looking, remembering the shapeshifting snake demon Xander and Willow had talked about, but this girl didn't seem the snake, none of her alarm bells were ringing now that she had her, and the girl's eyes weren't all hypnosy either. Slowly Buffy eased some of her weight off of Kendra, and said, "Suggestion, we quit el fighto, and we go to my watcher to figure out what's going on, okay?"

Kendra took the blonde in with suspicion for a moment, then took the offered hand, got up said, "Okay."

-----

Spike was heading out of his hide out, a few minions behind him. Just before he would reach the exit, he felt his throat constrict and lifted off the floor. He gurgled, and then gasped in pain as he was painfully slammed against the wall of the hallway. He looked surprised as a big red demon seemed to emerged from thin air, his head first, and then rippling down. Spike looked right just a bit, and so his minions stare blankly forward in mid-step, unmoving.

**"-Vampire,-"** the demon hissed angrily, "your information, was incomplete."

"Ugh," Spike gasped out, "is that you're exc- gargh-"

The demon squeezed harder, and took a step closer, saying, "I don't give excuses, vampire. Upon your hiring us, you were instructed to give us all the information you had. Nowhere did you mention a werecat."

"Were-what?" Spike spoke out starting to get fed up with this.

The demon smiled thinly, and explained, "Somehow I don't see how you can fail to notice a humanoid cat running around. If it weren't for the werecat, you're girl Amazon would have been dead by now, killed by her own mother."

Spike got angry, and slammed hard at the demon's hand around his throat. The demon winced and decided to let go. "Listen, buddy," Spike hissed out angrily, "I have never seen a bloody big cat around here, except in the zoo. I don't see what the problem is with it anyway, cat, no cat, just use it the same way."

"I can't," the demon whispered, although it sounded like a yelled order, "cats, I hate them, they are my only weakness; the damn things are just too damn pigheaded to be put under control."

Spike was about to leave, when another voice interrupted him. "Does the same go for a super witch?" Spike and the demon looked at the entrance of the hideout, where a man in a business suit stood.

"Super witch?" Spike muttered in annoyance. "What in bloody hell are you talking about? And who are you anyway?"

The man morphed, and formed a snake demon. It slithered closer a bit, and told Spike, "The redheaded super witch. She blasted me out my target's living room with nothing more but her anger and concern, didn't even need to mutter a spell," it hissed out, its forked tongue slipping out regularly. "Last time I ate a witch with that kind of power was a 150 years ago; there are only a handful, if even that many witches with that kind of power across the world."

Spike frowned, and then said, "Redhead? The only redhead I know whose with those bloody white hats, is no witch, she has no power, and if she does, it won't be enough to lift a sodding pencil."

The snake suddenly slid forward, fast enough for Spike to get nervous. The mind controlling demon just smirked and took a step back to give his fellow Terakan some room. "_/I/_ am not a liar, imply that again, or for that matter if I find out you're lying to me," the snake hissed out, its fangs and slitted, golden eyes glowing with anger in Spike's face. It shrugged, and added, "You won't very filling, with you turning to dust before you can nourish me, but it won't be for nourishment. The Order of Teraka frowns upon killing customers, sometimes I don't care if they frown."

"Right, well," Spike spoke, a little shiver of fear running down his spine. He was pretty sure he could take these demons, but still . . . especially seeing the snake slip smoothly back into its human disguise. "You can still finish the jobs, right?"

"Don't worry, by this afternoon they'll all be dead," the mind controlling demon spoke casually.

"Good," Spike answered with a huff, "Now, would let my minions move again, I'm somewhat in a hurry." The demons shuddered back to life, took a startled look at the two new demons, and then shrank in on themselves with fear. "Let's go," Spike ordered his minions, and walked out. The minions following, taking in the demons nervously. Once Spike was gone, the demons each went another way.

-----

Angel was smoking, as he had covered himself with the meager protections he could find. He groaned with the pain that the sunlight was inducing. He was already weakened, and soon the little protections he had managed to find wouldn't even be enough to keep him from bursting into flames either.

He looked up weakly as heavy steel-barred door opened noisily. Willy came in, grabbed Angel by his feet, and started dragging him out. "Don't worry, I got ya," Willy said as he continued dragging. As Angel was dragged through a short distance of sunlight, the smoking became heavier and he groaned with the pain. Then Willy opened a small trapdoor in the ground, and dumped Angel down it. He followed him down into the sewer. A moment later from the shadows emerged Spike.

"Hello, Willy," Spike told the weasel.

"Hey, Spike, see, I told ya," Willy replied, indicating Angel.

Spike grinned, nodded, and made a gesture with his head. Some of his minions came from the shadows and headed for the weakened Angel. "Hey, we had a deal remember?" Willy asked a little afraid they were just going to take him.

"Yeah, Willy, we did," Spike muttered and pulled dollars from within his coat. He started counting and dumped the bills in Willy's head. "Remember, mouth shut about this," Spike told Willy and then dumped a few extra bucks on his hand.

"Not a problem," Willy said, and then Spike dropped the last bill into the sewage water as his minions disappeared into the darkened tunnel dragging Angel. Spike shook his head in disgust at the money grubbing bastard, as he actually bent down to get the last bill. As Willy straightened back up, he asked, "Hey, what are you gonna do with him anyway?"

Spike gave a smirk, and told him, "I'm thinking, dinner and a movie, don't want to rush into anything. I've been hurt y'know." He then turned and walked after his minions.

-----

"My car!" Cordelia suddenly very loudly realized, as she and Xander jumped through the air.

"Ow, my ears," Xander complained, landing a little wobbly and walking normally across the slanted roof instead of running like he did before. He freed his head and attempted an ear massage.

"Damn you, Harris!" Cordelia told him with dread, much less loud now. "My car is still back there with that evil assassin!"

Xander sighed in frustration, stopping altogether, and turned around to face Cordelia and said, "Last time I checked, Queenie, bugs don't eat cars, and I'm pretty certain he wasn't hired to kill yours."

"Oh, yeah, laugh it up, Dweeb Boy," Cordelia told him angrily, "You're just a nobody, a wimp. All here sprouting around as if he's mister super hero, and now he runs like a coward."

"Hey, I attacked it, beat it, kicked it, it just turned to bugs and back again!" Xander yelled back at Cordelia, most assuredly pissed off. "It's called a tactical retreat, but I don't suppose you would understand something like that. Nah, you would want me to continue fighting, and in a lucky moment have that thing kill you no doubt!"

"Yeah, right; all you were thinking about was an opportunity to grope me!" Cordelia accused him taking a step forward.

Xander took a step forward as well, and added, "I'm not the dumb one who let bug assassin into the house."

"How was I supposed to know it was an assassin!" Cordelia yelled right back at him. "He looked human, sold makeup and gave free samples!"

"AT FIVE O'CLOCK IN THE GOD DAMN MORNING?" Xander screamed back at her, actually making Cordelia take a step back as she realized how little she had been thinking.

"Well, I thought he had really big family to support," Cordelia muttered, making Xander roll his eyes.

Just as he was about to say something about feeding a million mouth, a gun shot rang out, and some hail zipped right alongside Xander. Both of them looked down, seeing a portly, balding man with a gun leaning out a roof window, already yelling, "DAMN RIGHT IT'S FIVE O'CLOCK IN FUCKING MORNING!" He aimed his double barreled hunting rifle once again, making Xander grab Cordelia and started running. A second shot destroyed on of the roof tiles just behind Cordelia as the man yelled, "SOME PEOPLE ARE TRYING TO SLEEP HERE!" Xander tightened his grip around Cordelia's waist as the man reloaded. He jumped, and another gunshot rang out, while the man loudly added, "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING ON MY ROOF ANYWAY?" A tile broke on the new roof, and Cordelia's face was contorted in terror. Xander ran on, and quickly jumped a second time, pulling Cordelia along. Behind them, the man stopped firing, and suddenly questioned to himself softly, "How did you get there in the first place? And uh . . ." He blinked twice as he reminded himself at how high and far the two of them had jumped. He took it in one more time, cocked his head, and then quickly disappeared back into the house, shaking in fear.

On the second roof after the lunatic with a gun, Xander paused again, his hand still around Cordelia's waist. He looked back for a moment, than at Cordelia's face. Their eyes locked, and then they kissed hungrily, deeply, passionately. After a moment they broke apart, and they looked shocked at each other. Xander then muttered, "We need to get back, there I need sleep, and very strong, black coffee." Cordelia nodded agreement - fine she wanted Xander, but this was just way too freaky. Xander then continued jumping from roof to roof.

-----

"Giles, Giles!" Buffy called distraught as she entered the library. She took in Giles reading in a book, Jenny doing the same. Lotion and Deo were doing a light sparring match, while Willow wasn't present. The bunnied Amazon had taken off the hat, so her ears were clearly visible. Since her skirt was whirling about in her movements, the tail too was already very visible. When Lotion noticed Kendra, it was no surprise she went rigid with embarrassment.

Kendra came in after her, and taking in the others, and noticing Jenny and Lotion, she went immediately in a battle stance. Just before she could attack, while everyone stopped what they were doing to take in Buffy and thus Kendra, Buffy grabbed her fellow Slayer by her shoulders holding her back, and said, "Calm down, they aren't demons, they're good girls - just a temporary magic mishap."

Kendra looked with distaste at all the non-Slayers and non-Watchers assembled and said, "What . . . are dey all doing here?"

"They're friends," Buffy exclaimed as Giles stately walked around the counter to go to the new girl.

"Friends?" Kendra asked confused.

Buffy nodded to her, saying, "Yeah, friends, amigos . . ." Buffy paused as she took in Lotion and Deo, and added, "Some more than others; comrades in arms."

Giles reached Buffy and Kendra, and said cautiously, "I am Rupert Giles, and who might you be?"

Kendra opened her mouth to answer respectfully, but Buffy beat her to it, "This is Kendra, the Vampire Slayer."

"That is not possible," Deo spoke coming closer, her daughter in tow. Her eyes were on Kendra cold and narrow, actually making the Slayer shiver for a moment. "There is only one Slayer."

"Actually, Buffy died, was revived by CPR and a new Slayer was called. Her name _/is/_ Kendra," Giles answered calmly, resetting his glasses, "are you certain she is who she claims to be, Buffy?"

"No," Buffy answered again, before Kendra could tell something to verify her identity. The exotic Slayer flashed an annoyed look at Buffy, as she added, "But she's not a Terakan assassin. I made sure, no ring, and apart from her viper tongue, there's nothing snakey about her."

"Viper tongue?" Kendra questioned with an indignant look.

Buffy sighed, and told her annoying sister slayer, "It's a joke, okay?"

"She's human," Deo said, making Giles take a look at Deo, "My senses are quite a bit more sensitive than future son-in-law's and my daughters, Watcher, I sense nothing demonic."

Giles turned back to Kendra, and explained, "One of the Terakan assassins is a demonic shapeshifting snake."

Kendra looked with large eyes at the Amazon, jerked her head toward Giles at his explanation, then shook her head, and said, "Mr. Giles, my watcher can corroborate that I am indeed the Slayer."

"Slayer?"

Kendra whirled around and saw a somewhat awake Willow standing there in a red overall, and some fresh makeup, her hair was still grungy. Kendra's hands went up to fight, and Buffy grabbed the Slayer's shoulder, telling her annoyed, "Calm down, another friend.

"Apparently this is Kendra, and there's been a screw up," Buffy told her best friend, indicating Kendra with her free hand.

"Oh! You're the other Slayer," Willow said, and told Buffy, "Freshening up a bit in the bathroom." Willow then frowned and asked Kendra, "What are you doing here?"

Buffy folded her arms across her chest, and added, "Yeah, and why didn't you contact us on beforehand or something."

The redhead slipped past the Slayers, looked at Lotion for a moment, and then moved over to Jenny with a hopeful look. The cat-woman shook her head just a bit, making Willow's eyes fall. She looked back up and then glared at Deo, who just returned a smile.

"Mr. Giles, I still do not understand," Kendra spoke up, looking around, "a Slayer is supposed to work alone, so her identity is not revealed, and she does not endanger others. I do not see why you would let Buffy have friends."

"What?" Buffy asked shocked.

"Ah, well," Giles answered the exotic slayer, fidgeting, "I came to realize that with Buffy, I had to make allowances."

"What is _/that/_ supposed to mean?" Buffy wondered out loud.

"They cannot help," Kendra continued not understanding, "even if they know; they'd be too weak." Kendra indicated Lotion, while adding, "Bunny or no bunny."

That was it. For a whole long time, Lotion had turned inside, attempting to find her balance with the weird placing of her ears, more so while adding the tension of flatting them over her head. Even more so, the embarrassment, the mortification of being part Bunny in front of her friends and her mother, who was the one who got her into this. And now this. "I KILL!" she yelled in rage, speeding forward and slamming a devastating punch across Kendra's jaw. The Slayer didn't even have time to try and deflect the blow, before it hit, and she was launched backward, till she crashed into the wall perpendicular to the doors. Kendra groaned in pain, and had difficulty keeping her eyes open.

Lotion appeared before her, pulled her out of the wall, and as she rammed a fist in Kendra's stomach said, having lost all care about proper English, "I not bunny! You tease! Then worse, dare say I weak!"

Kendra blocked the following knee with extreme effort, groaning out. With an enraged yell Lotion threw another punch. Kendra blocked it, but yelled in pain as her arm was jarred. Then she felt herself be lifted off the ground by her shoulders, and so the girl pull back her leg. "Lotion!" Giles snapped, and Lotion snapped her head back at him. "I believe that's enough."

With Kendra looking fearfully hopeful at Lotion's face, the Amazon contemplated Giles words. Then, without opening her mouth, she growled and powerfully put the Slayer back down on her feet. Lotion turned away a bit, and Kendra stumbled back to her own place.

Buffy smirked evilly at Kendra, and told her smugly, "A word of advice, don't piss off the crazy Amazon chick."

Kendra gave Buffy a glare, and then spoke up with some difficulty, "How is this possible? No human can be this strong without the use of dark magics."

"I DO NOT CHEAT!" Lotion screamed as a new punch connected to Kendra's chin. The Slayer was once more launched back, until she smashed into the same place she smashed into before, making the Kendra-shaped indentation a little deeper. There she stood for a moment, groaned, before she slowly sank to her knees and then fell down further.

"And I warned her too," Buffy said with mock-regret, than gave bunny-Lotion a big smile and two thumbs up. The Amazon gave Buffy a glare who quickly took a step back closer to Willow.

"Was that really necessary?" Giles asked of Lotion as she returned to her mother, who didn't seem to think anything was wrong. Jenny looked concerned at the delirious Slayer, and hoped she was alright.

"She accused me of cheating," Lotion just replied, making Giles sigh.

In the meantime the watcher had gone over to the phone, while taking a note book out of one of the counter's drawers. Everyone looked expectantly as Giles moments later started dialing a number. A bit later, Giles started speaking, "Ah, Mr. Zabuto, I am Rupert Giles. I am Buffy Summers' watcher in Sunnydale."

The others couldn't hear the other end of the conversation. Then Giles spoke a few things that made no sense at all; probably some identifying code to verify they really were watchers, Willow thought. Then Giles continued speaking understandably, "Samuel, I have here a girl who says her name is Kendra, and that she is the Slayer.

"Mmh, mmh," Giles returned into the phone, and then proceeded with giving a description of Kendra. "Indeed. I see, then she is who she says she is." Giles nodded, and finished, "Thank you, and godspeed, Samuel."

As Giles put down the phone, there was a groan from the downed slayer, and slowly and painfully Kendra got up. Giles turned to the group of waiting people, and said, "Well, Kendra indeed is who she says she is."

Willow asked subdued, still struggling with her enhanced magic, "Shouldn't they have called us before they sent her here?"

Kendra was finally to her feet and shook her head to clear it. Jenny arrived at the Slayer and looked her over, just to be sure Lotion hadn't actually hurt Kendra.

"There we have it then," Buffy told Kendra bitingly, "You didn't give us your schedule, we don't need you, you can go home."

Giles spoke up, pacing back and forth, holding his glasses, "Mr. Zabuto and I have already agreed that for the time being Kendra will remain here, until the present crisis is averted. Kendra, why exactly did he send you here?"

Kendra made a tiny bow, and said, "There were signs, all pointing that a dark power was about to rise in Sunnydale. Mr. Zabuto that there was a larger chance of success if the forces of darkness did not know I was present."

"So she attacks me," Buffy muttered with rolling eyes. "Brilliant scheming."

Before Kendra could answer, Jenny said, "Drusilla." Everyone looked over to her, as she continued, "We found a ritual from Du Lac's work, it is to revive a wounded master vampire, on the night of the new moon."

"That's tonight," Willow said with wide concerned eyes. Jenny nodded. "Then Spike is the one who hired the Order of Teraka; to keep us from interfering," Willow added with annoyed revelation.

The door to the library opened, and in came Xander and Cordelia. Kendra was still recovering to attack the new entries. "Speaking of the Order," Xander said, apparently having heard the last words, "We just met the king _/freak/_ of the Order."

Kendra went rigid, and looked down. Cordelia came after him, and said, "And you left my car with bug guy."

"Will you quit with the damn car already?" Xander spat at her. Cordelia glared at him as she walked past them all to a seat at the table. "It isn't like you left the keys inside, did you?" Cordelia huffed and folded her arms across her chest.

Buffy smiled at Xander, asking him sweetly, "Xander, what is it with you and bug people?"

"Oh," Xander said, turning back to look at his love, "But this is different. Praying Mantis lady _/was/_ a bug, this was a guy _/of/_ bugs. I was just looking forward for some payback too, but fists and kicks just went straight through. The guy turned into a mass of bugs for a while, and then he was back to his guy-form again. Seriously . . ." Xander paused as he finally lost enough frustration to notice Kendra half hidden behind Jenny - and Kendra was hot. "Oh, hello, and who might you be?"

"Kendra the vampire Slayer," Deo supplied casually. Xander turned to look at the Amazon, who added, "too long a story to tell, son in law."

Xander narrowed his eyes at her, and said, "If I weren't hunted by the Order of Teraka, I'd be finding away to kill you . . . or at least hurt you very badly." Deo smirked at him. Xander turned back, smiled at the shy, sexy Slayer and offered his hand, "Nice to meet you, how are you?" Cordelia rolled his eyes at Xander's flirting, while Buffy just looked even more annoyed.

Kendra tried to answer, looking half up, very much aware of Xander's physique, the muscles in his bare arms, and the ones in his legs, covered in a skintight jeans, something else covered by those jeans. His gender was unmistakable, and much more important, "I . . . uh . . . tank . . . uh, I tink . . . I will be of service." Buffy rolled her eyes.

"Great, it's good to help people out," Xander answered with a smile, not quite knowing what else to say to such a statement.

He then backed away, while Giles pulled a book from the counter. "Xander, see if you can see him in here, and whether he has a weakness," Giles said, while Xander nodded and came over.

Lotion in the meanwhile, had walked over, and grabbed Kendra by the neck, pulling her closer. The Slayer looked up and afraid at the freakishly strong Amazon. Before anyone could warn her, Lotion said, "Go for my future husband, and I will kill you. I've tolerated enough."

"Lotion," Willow spoke up, feeling sad for Kendra, seeing her former self reflected back on, "don't worry, she's too shy to try anything."

"She better not," Lotion whispered and backed off from the exotic slayer.

Buffy looked back up and then settled on Kendra, asking her, "There's one thing that's still bugging me though." Buffy flashed a quick look and smirk over at Cordelia and Xander, both of which had sent a glare her way. "How come you attacked me?"

"Because . . . I tought you were . . . a vampire," Kendra answered with a little difficulty, still feeling her banged up body, eying Lotion with a lot of respect.

"Oh, neato, score one royal miss for the newbie," Buffy said rolling her eyes.

Kendra got a little pissed off at the elder Slayer, and replied, "I had good reason to teenk you were a vampire. Did I not see you kissing one earlier tonight?"

Willow went rigid and slung a supportive arm around Buffy, saying, "Buffy would never do that . . ." Buffy smiled at the support, but then Willow frowned, ". . . except for that you on a rare occasion do that." Buffy gave Willow a quick look of confused betrayal. Willow once again added though, "But only with Angel. Right?"

"Of course," Buffy answered with just a little offence.

"Angel?" Kendra asked with a frown. "Do you mean Angelus? I've reat about eem, ee's a monstar."

"Not anymore," Giles said cleaning his glasses, looking over Xander's shoulder as he flipped another page in the book.

"He's got a gypsy curse now," Buffy explained.

"Gypsy curse?" Deo asked intrigued.

Xander gave a grumble before explaining, "They stuffed the soul of the guy he was before becoming a vampire back inside the body."

"Ee didn't seem any better than the otter animals when I- . . ." Kendra started, and the quit the moment she saw Buffy turn her head and glare dangerously at her.

"When you what?" Buffy hissed, stepping up to the other Slayer. "When you _/what/_?"

Kendra swallowed, as she could feel Buffy's hate radiating off of the older Slayer, directed straight at her. "When I locked eem in a dungeon wit eastern exposure at tis dingy bar," she explained, seeing Buffy's eyes widened with fear and a cold simmering rage.

**"-Show me,-"** Buffy growled out with rage, grabbing the exotic Slayer and dragging her along to the exit.

"Hey, Buffy, don't split up, there are assassins out there," Xander called out, as he continued flipping through the book.

Buffy threw open the doors, almost tossing Kendra out, and returned with a smile, "I'll keep her safe." Then Buffy was out the door.

"Buffy!" Willow tried calling but she was already gone. "Be careful," she added softly.

"Damn," Deo said annoyed. Everyone remaining looked at her. "Now I'll have to teach them mental shields later when they return."

"Mental shields?" Cordelia asked confusion.

"The Dinuano demon, the mind controller," Deo explained calmly, her beautiful face seemingly in a perpetual scowl. "We cannot fight him if he can simply take over our minds."

"You can teach us?" Willow asked incredulously. The woman was an annoying bitch, who may have put them in even more danger than the all the Terakan assassins combines, and now she was helping again, even though she refused to remove what she did to Willow.

As Deo nodded, Jenny said sarcastically, "Forgive me if I seem rude, but you couldn't keep the demon from taking you over; what do you think you can teach them in a few hours, or even less."

"Twelve I think," Giles said with an educated guess, "I highly doubt they'd attack in the middle of the day with witnesses."

Deo took back over, "I wasn't prepared; and no, I don't, I don't think even if I was prepared I could keep its mind out of me indefinitely. But that's not necessary. When you attacked it; it was not able to simply command me to kill you. He was not prepared for your presence, and I don't know if its limitations are less when it is, but it has demonstrated it has them. You need to be able to keep him out of your mind just long enough to reach it and fight it physically. If it's fighting a physical battle, its mental abilities seem diminished."

"That is a good idea," Giles spoke as he walked in the middle of the room. "I myself have some mental shield abilities, and no doubt Jenny as well, or not?"

"Limited, very limited," the werecat replied, almost purring.

"Needed it to keep Eyghon from taking over, huh?" Willow said as she came to the middle of the library, where Cordelia joined them as well.

Giles nodded, "It is six thirty right now, school starts in two hours. I suggest we start right away. Each of us teaching the others all we now, there are multiple mental shield techniques, we will likely have different ones, and our chances of success increase if we have more than one."

"Agreed," Deo spoke as she sat down in a lotus position. Xander joined them, as did Lotion and all of them sat down to learn.

-----

Buffy and Kendra entered Willy's basement, and then into the open dungeon. Buffy looked around and saw nothing; Kendra did the same, saw the same, but realized the meaning. "No ashes," she pointed out.

Buffy who was in the back looking around some boxes, turned around and asked, "What?"

"No ashes, when a vampire dies, ee leeves ashes," Kendra explained to the blonde Slayer.

"I know that, I've killed vampires," Buffy told Kendra her concern not making the connection.

Kendra then calmly clarified, "Eef there are no ashes, that means that he was not eere."

Buffy stepped up to Kendra. She growled, "That's good, that means I don't have to kill you."

Kendra took a step closer, and replied, "You could try. Eet eesn't my fault aneeway. I'm supposed to keell vampires."

Buffy narrowed her eyes, and then turned around, walking back out the dungeon. Kendra followed and together they climbed back up the stairs. They found Willy coming from a side door, and he looked with wide eyes at the girls. "Hey!" Buffy blurted out, rapidly closing the distance between her and him. She grabbed him by the collar and spun him around facing the bar counter. With a quick shove she pushed him back against it, making his bend back. She took another step closer and bent menacingly over him, grabbing his collar. "Where's Angel?" Buffy requested as Kendra stepped next to her, peering closely at the sleaze bag.

Willy in the meantime was in heaven, a scary heaven, but a heaven. Two of the hottest girls he'd every seen was partially leaning against him. He had his hands up at his head to show his innocence, or at least harmlessness, and so he could feel Buffy's breasts press against his side and stomach, along with the crooked sweater she wore. Her hair was still mostly a mess; for once in her life the ex-cheerleader wasn't in the mood to mess with them. Of her makeup of the night before, only a bit was left, her lips just a bit more pink that without any makeup on. The sexy face was just centimeters away, a small pat of him urging him to kiss it. At the same time, he could feel her strength, and her hot breath and glaring eyes made it very clear she willing and able to use it. The second girl was an exotic one, dark skin. Her hair was done in a loose tail; and she wore thick red lipstick, and deep orange eyeshadow. She too had raw power, he could tell. The cleavage-rich small top, leaving her midriff bare above a pare of tight pants, gave the girl an almost naughty, sexy look - if her eyes weren't those of cold, trained killing machine. He felt fear coursing through his veins, as the other substance usually in his veins went south. "Huh?" he managed to blurt out from his confused, aroused, fearful position.

"Tee vampire I locked up down dere," Kendra clarified.

"Oh, Angel!" Willy exclaimed making the pissed off Buffy roll her eyes. "He's fine. I saved him in the nick of time too. Five more minutes and he'd be extra well done." Buffy got a little closer, a bit more menacing, a bit more arousing. "What? You'd think I let my buddy Angel fry? Me and him go _/way/_ back."

"Then where is he?" Buffy questioned the bar weasel.

Willy smiled like one too, when he replied, "He went down below, you know, to recuperate."

Buffy grimaced, but Kendra spoke up, "Dere, ee's fine. Let's go back to Mr. Giles for furder eenstructions."

Buffy gave Kendra a look, and then let Willy go. She straightened up, and said, "Fine, let's get back."

She started walking toward the exit, and Kendra came right after her. Willy got up, walked to straight across from the exit, seeing Buffy and Kendra walking just at it, and he said, "Hey, I _/gotta/_ ask you two something." Buffy and Kendra stopped, and turned around. Buffy placed her right hand in her side, and cocked her head, while Kendra just turned half, and turned the rest with her head. "Have you thought about doing nude modeling?" he asked the two hot girls, who showed no reaction, apart from Buffy raising her eyebrows. Willy continued, "I know this guy who has a camera, and he's really good. Strictly high class art photos - just nude." The Slayers just turned around and walked away. "Call me if you change your minds!" he called after them.

-----

Buffy was reading through a book with known Terakan assassins in order to find Xander's bug guy. Xander himself was across from Buffy at the counter reading through a different book, as were others. Buffy was doing two more things at the same time. The first was to keep up the mental block Deo and Giles had just told her to do. Basically, the two went thus. Deo's was to generate a barrier around the mind of energy, my envisioning a wall or something else that felt unpassable to her wrapped around her mind and head. Giles' was twofold, first keep the mind totally empty, and second whenever one was forced to think, making it go utterly chaotic, without pattern, with lots of emotions. Buffy found she had no trouble with Giles' instructions. Blank was what she wanted to be in the first place, and in combination with her friends and one boyfriend under attack, and the irritating newly arrived Slayer - chaos and emotions were practically unavoidable. Periodically Deo, Jenny, or Giles would attempt with some magic to breach her, and the other's barriers, for now they all held.

The second thing she was doing, was watching said Slayer. Kendra was with Giles at the counter, talking and joking with him. If she didn't know better she'd say Kendra was coming onto Giles. Worse, they were laughing and joking about research, boring old books, and more. Next to her sat Willow and she was practicing her mental shields, while keeping her magic down. Cordelia sitting across from Willow, seemed mostly bored and annoyed. Lotion finally, had retreated to the back of the library, hating her bunnyfication and being mortified by it. Deo and Jenny were in some kind of heated argument that Buffy had no interest in.

"Look at that, Giles junior," Buffy muttered just a little jealous.

"Oh, well," Willow started, looking at the two, "well, don't worry, Giles will always consider you his Slayer."

Buffy sighed, and then leant back. "Yeah, I suppose," she answered her best friend and rival.

Willow blinked and asked Buffy, "Then what is it?"

Buffy chewed her bottom lip for a few moments, and then answered, "You and Xander."

"Huh? What did we do?" Willow asked Buffy confused.

"Help me," Buffy replied sadly. Willow blinked, a little surprised and confused. Buffy pulled her feet of the table and properly faced Willow. Then softly she explained, "I'm the Slayer, I was chosen to do this, and I hate - hated it. Then you two come along, and you start helping me; you don't have to do it, but you do. You choose to fight on my side, and it will probably mean we're all going to die together young; or just you. I'm supposed to protect you guys, but instead, you've been protecting me. I wish I could teleport you both to the other side of the planet out of harm's way - except that you probably be back in a day or two, fighting with me. And me; I'm trying to do as less as possible, then I look at her, a watcher, no friends, far away from her family - and I realize something; I'm the luckiest girl around with you guys as friends - and I suppose even Lotion and Cordy. Then I remember again how I was just a few days ago . . ." Buffy paused, looked deeply into Willow's eyes, and finished, "It makes me feel guilty."

"H-hey, no guilt, Buffy," Willow said. Realizing her emotions were going up, and not wanting to go out of control again, got her anxious. She took a deep breath, pushed her every boiling and rising magic deeply away, and continued, "You got a big death sentence, eternal fighting, and the weight and fate of the world slammed on your doorstep, everybody who gets that is entitled to some moping."

Buffy smiled, and then added, "Well, no more moping from me. From now on, Will, I'm demon asskick gal and loving it."

"Okay," Willow answered a little uncertain at Buffy's smile.

"Aha!" Xander exclaimed triumphant, and everyone looked over at. "Found him, Mr. Bugs R Me!" Buffy and Willow quickly walked over, as did Giles and Kendra. "Can only be killed in his disassembled state," Xander read from the book with a small drawing. "You hear that Cordelia? That means when it's in its itty bitty bug parts; which it wasn't. So if we'd stayed, we'd be bug food. You got any more complaints about your car?"

"It better not be dirty on bug poop, Harris, you're paying the cleaning bill," Cordelia told him, folding her arms across her chest.

The others looked with odd looks at the couple firing barbs at each other. "Ha!" Xander called with a superior grin. "You wound me with your . . ." Xander paused, his triumphant turned down. "How much would that be?"

"It's a Mercedes, ten thousand bucks wouldn't be out of the realm of possibility," Cordelia stated with superiority.

"Hey! I'm just a poor emancipated boy, with a little well fare and a part time job at a bookstore! I'd be broke!" Xander complained deeply wounded. He turned to Giles and pleaded, "Tell her I can't be blamed for what some demon does!"

Buffy grinned, as did Willow, while Kendra looked both amazed and a little intimidated at Xander. Buffy placed her hand on his shoulders, and said, "Don't worry, Xan. An assassin won't soil a car."

"Of course, he might put a bomb on it," Willow supplied thoughtfully. Xander looked at her with shock.

"Yep, to kill the owner when she starts the car," Buffy added with a delicious grin as Xander blanched further. "I hear the bomb squad just detonate the bomb to be safe. That would come down to some hundred fifty thousand dollars." Xander whimpered.

"Which you do not have to pay, Xander," Giles spoke casually. "She can't blame you for what an assassin did."

"I wouldn't be so sure," Cordelia added thoughtfully, "you wouldn't believe what a lawyer can spin in the courtroom."

It was time for Kendra to jump in, albeit a little timidly, "D-de council has lawyers; good ones . . . uhm . . . they'd be of service . . . free of charge to close allies, I teenk."

"How do you know the council has lawyers?" Buffy asked astonished.

"Eets in de Slayer handbook," Kendra answered with a smile.

"There's a Slayer handbook?" Buffy asked surprised, then turned to Giles. "How come I didn't get a Slayer handbook?" Cordelia, Xander and Willow looked at the interchange.

"Ah, well," Giles said with a smle, "you were found so late you were already chosen, Merrick put in his journals he thought it was best to give you a crash course in how to fight and stay alive before going on the next stage."

"And what about you?" Buffy asked him dangerously.

Nervously Giles swallowed, and explained, "Well, I thought that in your case, the handbook would be . . . uhm . . . not for you?"

"What I want to know is," Willow butted enthusiastically in with a smile, "is there a tank top too, 'cause that would be cool."

"Swim trunks," Xander added as Buffy, Kendra and Giles were giving Willow a strange look. "A nice cross with a stake emblem, with a blazing yellow sun behind it low on the pipe."

"A bathing suit," Cordelia mused, as she pictured Xander's emblem, "'Cause that emblem will be the big fashion hit!"

With a wide grin and a low voice Xander added, "Bikinis."

"You are three are spazzes," Buffy told them rapidly. "You do realize that, don't you?"

"Hey, I can't help it you're such a dork, the biggest geeks in school have better fashion sense than you do," Cordelia told the Slayer far too sweetly.

"I do not understand?" Kendra asked them confused.

Buffy rolled her eyes, and checked out the clock in one smooth movement, then said, "On that note, I better get to my police thingy, before Snyder is going to blow a fuse."

Xander looked up, and Deo took notice of it. He got up and started walking after Buffy, saying, "Yeah, I gotta go put in an appearance as well."

"Me too," Willow said and left the library as well.

Kendra followed them out the door with her eyes.

-----

Outside the library Buffy turned right, while Xander went left. Willow went in the same direction as Buffy went. Xander took the first right. The corridor moved onward to the left as well, to the front of the school. Facing the street was a large window. After a few steps he stopped, looking directly at a hot girl in a short skirt. Behind there wasA small top and high heels completed the brunette's ensemble. "You're not fooling me a second time, Snakey," Xander said coldly. The other students in the room just looked confused.

The brunette looked at him surprised for a moment, and then she chuckled. "How did you know?" the girl asked him sweetly.

"You can change your shape, but you can't change your demonic essence," Xander spoke softly with a thin smile. "There's been several times I failed to notice the signs my energy sense told me, not any more." The students around him and the girl who took a step to the middle of the hallway, looked with greater confusion and concern from one side to the other.

The brunette's eyes gained the unnatural sparkle, but Xander averted his eyes, looking down and a way, keeping an eye on the girl from the corner of its eyes. "Well, then," the girl with a sigh in her voice, "I suppose we're going to do this the hard way."

The next moment everyone screamed in fear as the girl morphed in her true cobra-like form and jumped forward, fangs bared. Xander quickly jumped back, once again coming into the cross corridor. With a hiss the cobra bit down at Xander's neck, and just barely moved his body to the left. He twisted to his left further and rammed his left fist forward. The snake was no slouch either, and pulled its head and body back, while bringing up its right arm to block Xander's punch. It bit at Xander's exposed side, but with a roar he brought up his right fist in an uppercut. It smashed into the Snake's chin before the fangs could bit into Xander. With a painful groan the snake was launched off its feet and backward toward the library entrance. As around Xander people screamed, and Buffy and Willow had turned to look, the Snake somehow used its tail as a spring board, launching itself at Xander the moment its body hit the floor.

With all the speed Xander could squeeze from his body, he let himself drop down, and the fangs snapped shut just above him. The demon flew onward, as Xander landed on his hands twisting around. With a quick motion Xander swiped at the demon, smashing it in the lower part of its snake body. It growled in the pain, as both were once again at the cross roads of the corridors. The snake's fist shot down, and as it hit Xander full in the face - making him slide back and yell with the sudden pain - a gunshot rang out through the corridor.

At the other side of the corridor, Buffy had just named her presence to the police woman, as a loud round of screaming rang out. Buffy and everyone else, including Willow who was a little further behind her, turned as one toward the sounds of fear. A moment later there was loud hissing growl, Xander came sliding back out of a side corridor, and a man-sized cobra with arms came jumping in, nearly snapping its fangs into Xander. Buffy jerked with fear for her fried as she saw it happening, in her minds eye her Slayer instincts told her how to fight that thing already. The quick quiver of fear, was what saved her life. It made her see in the corner of her eye, the police woman pull a gun from her holster and aim it at Buffy. Her body reacted on pure instinct, twisting off to the right, toward the raging fight, with inhuman speed. The gunshot rang out, as the bullet already zipped centimeters away from the slayer.

The students on this side screamed out as well, and the bullet hurtled straight at the suddenly terrified Willow. Daniel 'Oz' Osbourne who was standing next to her jumped . . . then hung in the air as Willow energy blasted out from her. Her hand shot up, and the bullet stopped moving hanging in the air just before or, her eyes wide as she felt her magic erupt from her being. As cop fired several more shots, a whirlwind of energy flashed around the witch, several lightning-like bolts shooting out from her. A water pipe sprung where one struck, making water rapidly flow across the floor. More screams sounded as several fire bolts were flung from Willow - and casually twisted around anyone on its path par Deo's technique - at least the deadly ones that was. Many weaker flashes hit there mark, turning students to singed delirium before the cold water sloshing their feet made them run away. After Buffy jumped up to the ceiling to avoid another bullet, it went straight for Jonathan who stood off to the side against the wall nailed immovable by fear. How she could know, Willow didn't understand, but she knew the bullet went for it. The fright of his impending death made Willow's power shot out from her again, making Oz drop to the floor without mercy, and turned the bullet to a pie which slammed into Jonathan's shocked face.

"Ow," Oz muttered from the floor, and then looked up at Willow, having multi-colored arcs of energy and resulting wind flash around her. "Wow," Oz muttered with wide eyes. The other students didn't have the same cool, and were too busy trying to run for safety and screaming out; they were hardly aware of Willow's magic.

Buffy had finally managed to get close enough to the gun-wielding Terakan fake-cop woman to beat the gun out of her hands, which she promptly did. The gun skittered off to their left, and Buffy followed up with a punch to the woman's face, roaring out her displeasure. The woman got launched off her feet, landed a few meters away as Buffy stalked after her. As she got up, she pulled another gun from an ankle holster and fired. Buffy was already moving, forward and twisting off to the side.

Xander blocked the right cross with his right for arm. The punch coming from the snake demon had his arm buzzing with the impact though. He threw a punch which connected to what past for the snake's chest - which was really just a really thick hose, with a small piece a little wide then the rest where the arms were attached. Xander surged forward, and landed a knee in the demon's body, making it jerk and give a grunt of pain. Suddenly Xander felt his legs being grabbed. His surprised look down, even if it was for a fraction of a second was his critical mistake. From grabbed came secured, and the same happened to its legs higher up. The knee had brought Xander very close to the snake, had been his undoing. In less then a second the snake had wrapped himself around Xander's lower legs. Another moment later it was up to his torso. Finally it wrapped Xander's hands tight to his body, and a moment later it was up to his chest. Xander struggled, but the snake's body design to strangle was too strong. "Now you die," the demon hissed amongst fleeing students, grabbing Xander by his shoulders with an iron grip. It opened its mouth wide, baring its poisonous fangs, and lunged down . . .

"AAAH!" the demon suddenly screamed, its right arm reaching over to its left, where purplish blood oozed from a wound.

Xander wasted no time capitalizing on his good fortune, and slammed his forehead with all his might into the snake's nose. Wrenching his arms free, he followed up with a devastating right cross, which would normally have sent the snake flying meters away. As it was, the Snake was still half coiled around Xander, and so it only served to loosen the snake's coil, and sent it slithering back till it fell to the floor.

As the snake rapidly got up, Xander took a peak at what had been his fortune. The demon rose and did the same, looking behind him for just a moment. He obviously recognized the perpetrator and hissed out, "That incompetent bitch!" Then, deciding that with his still injured arm, fighting Xander was to big a risk, it turned to its right and bounded into the side corridor Xander met it earlier.

On the other side of the school hall things changed for the worse. As the fake police woman rounded the corner she fired another shot, while Buffy pursued her, confident in her speed and agility as well as the woman's lousy aim to survive it. That is when it happened. The students hysterical screaming - and Oz' awed look - stopped. Instantly they were calm and turned around to face Buffy, most behind her, but some before her on her path toward the woman. Willow looked confused as Oz turned away from her as he got up, and went after Buffy along with the rest of the students. Buffy hesitated for a moment as she saw the large imposing red demon casually walk in Sunnydale High's corridors in front of her, coming toward her. The moment of hesitation was enough for her to miss one student's punch, and another's swipe. A moment later she caught said punch on her chin, and the swipe across her legs, and down she went.

As more and more students started beating and kicking the down Buffy, the demon grabbed the other Terakan assassin by her neck, lifted her smoothly onto the floor and rammed her painfully into the wall. The Dinoano demon looked over at the Slayer being pounded by her fellow students and whispered, "Mental shields - she even saw me. Expected, albeit annoying." The demon whipped his head to the woman, and whispered dangerously, "As for you, you're antics have ruined the element of surprise. You have no elegance, no art, nothing discrete, just point and shoot. It's a miracle how you even managed one hit, and why the Order keeps you on, perhaps I should bring that up."

Buffy, still half trapped under the pile of students, whispered as the pain started to get to her, "Sorry, guys." With a roar she fought back, easily removing the group of students off of her, then kicking and punching them aside; however there were still many more students coming.

Buffy turned to the demon, and took in the scene of the demon holding up the fake police woman for just a moment. The demon looked over to her, grimaced and tossed the other Terakan assassin behind her, hissing, "Get lost." The demon grinned at Buffy and focused his gaze on her. Buffy who just started to charge the demon, was confused for a moment, then felt her mind tingling, as if someone was attempting to shove a thousand needles into her mind. She grabbed her hand, and groaned with the painful sensation, then realizing the demon was about to pierce her mental shield. This allowed the students to once more pounce on her, beating her in her face, and kicking into her stomach.

"NNGG!" Buffy groaned out, at the multiple sensations of pain. One student appeared amongst the crowd holding a knife, steadily moving toward the helpless Slayer.

Willow had followed Oz onto the side corridor, and looked in shock as the sweet guy was kicking her best friend. She had been busy reigning in her emotions and power, simply because she was afraid she might hurt someone, or turn them into a toad or something. Luckily for - and possibly many others - the cavalry had arrived. Jenny and Kendra came barreling past her. Jenny was partly on all fours, growling viciously. They wasted no time getting to the students and tearing them off of Buffy. When they saw writhing on the floor clutching her head. Jenny's eyes flashed and then attacked the demon. Kendra remained behind, shaking Buffy to see if she could get her out of it.

Jenny reached the demon and slashed at it with her claws. The demon caught her at her wrists and lifted her off the floor. "I'm not unprepared now, you cat bitch," demon growled at her, and slammed his foot into Jenny's stomach.

She groaned, and told him, "Fuck you." Her entire body twisted up and slammed her knee into its chin and the demon staggered back, letting go of the werecat.

-----

Meanwhile back in the library, the remaining occupants just saw Kendra and Jenny tearing out of there at the commotion outside. They had remained for a short while to see if no one would attack inside as well, but had soon lost the war between patience and concern, good thing too. That left Lotion, Deo, Cordelia and Giles. "Quite impressive," Deo spoke with a satisfied smile, looking at where Xander was fighting the snake demon as if she could look through the wall. Giles looked at her questioningly, and she added, "Young Xander felt the snake demon and went to face him. He's becoming better with his sixth sense - that is good."

Giles and Deo were standing with the counter while Lotion was sitting at the table, gnawing her teeth. A huge part of her wanted to go out and help the others, most notably her fiance, but if she went out and fight, everyone would see her as a Bunny. There was no way she could keep her present condition a secret if she had to make all kinds of fighting moves. Besides, she didn't know how many assassins were outside, and how many would come in here. Giles and Cordelia might need the help of both her and Deo - with all her strength, the mother still couldn't be in two places at the same time after all. That, and her shame made her stay put.

Cordelia was mostly tense as gunshots, screams and the occasional yell of pain filtered muffled into the library. She was still sitting at the counter just left of Giles, and was both stricken with a little fear and guilt. Was the bug guy out there? Should she help? Are you crazy even thinking that?

There was a sound, and a filter high up in the far left corner of the library came tumbling down from its place. There was a flash, and Giles instantly dove at Cordelia, yelling, "Down!" He yelled in pain as he collided with the cheerleader and forced down and off the stool, but not before Cordelia yelled out in pain and reached for her left cheek with her left hand.

"AH!" she yelled a second time, as she collided with the floor Giles on top of her, he yelled out even harder. Cordelia was on her side, with Giles over at her waist, and he she could see his legs. Two handles of what had to be throwing knives stuck out of his right leg. The rest of the knives were obviously in his flesh: one just above his knee, the other embedded in the dividing line between his leg and groin. Blood oozed steadily from the wounds, coloring his greenish pants a dark ugly brownish-purple. Cordelia's eyes were wide, more so when she felt blood flow against the hand she still held against her cheek. Her face!

The assassin had thrown knives twice in rapid succession before slipping just as rapidly from the ventilation shaft. The first volley was at all four occupants of the library, the second only at the two remaining upright. Both throws were eight knifes - that meant the first time it was two per person, the second time four. The first time around Lotion and Deo had rather easily dodged the two knives thrown their way. The second time with four they had more trouble. Lotion - not as fast, strong and agile (yet) - as her mother had the most difficulty. Jumping back onto the table she sat at, made her avoid one knife. The second coming at her face she avoided by pushing her head out of the way. A third coming at her heart she swatted aside, the fourth coming at her stomach she only barely avoided by jumping back, down and twisting herself end over end. It still wasn't quite enough to keep the last knife from cutting through her skintight top.

The next moment the assassin was already there - dressed in black leather pants, a black top, a black leather jacket and black boots. Her black hair fit perfectly with her dress sense - which was completed by having knives, daggers, and swords in every available position. The only thing that disrupted the theme, was the bright red lipstick. With a grunt she had pulled two curved swords from sheaths on her back and slashed then down at Lotion. The bunnyfied Lotion jumped backward, off the table. Her foot caught behind one of the chairs, having lost some of her balance and familiarity in her new form - most notably the unfamiliar place of her ears and with them her sense of balance. Worse, bunnies weren't exactly fighters or acrobats, making it impossible for her to land properly and so she landed painfully on her tail.

"YOW!" she screamed out, quickly rolling herself onward and off her offended new body part.

"Too easy," the female sword master whispered with a satisfied grin and drove both swords down at Lotion as she jumped off the table.

"NO!" sounded loudly through the library, and a moment later the swords stuck into the wooden floor just in front of Lotion who looked up surprised. The assassin looked angrily at the one who had interrupted her kill. Deo had jumped forward with amazing speed as she saw her daughter's predicament, grabbed the assassins wrists, and forced the swords back just enough to miss. Growling angrily, Deo said, "You don't touch my daughter."

A moment later Deo kicked out with a vicious kick to the assassins torso. With a crack of some of her ribs. Doubled over, she was launched backward and up like a bullet, till she crashed through a book case, which instantly shattered.

Giles had just finished maneuvering himself off of Cordelia, while the cheerleader started to rise, as he noticed the destruction of the book case. "WATCH THE BOOKS!" he yelled in dread.

"The books?" Cordelia questioned the librarian in disbelief. "Watch the books?" Giles shrugged.

Deo jumped up the higher section of the library, and actually growled. Her long brunette hair flowing with the movement. She stepped down off the railing, just as the assassin got up, holding her broken ribs in pain. The sword mistress grimaced at the enraged face of the Amazon as she stalked toward her. "Damn it," she hissed. Forcing herself up, turned around and ran. She jumped up a book case, and then jumped onward through narrow window at ground level. She rolled over the grass, got up again, and ran off.

-----

As the wounded snake demon tried to run off to recuperate from the bullet wound, Xander quickly chased after it. "You're not getting away," Xander growled at its retreated form, catching up to the demon quickly. It suddenly turned around and swiped the back of its snake body at Xander. Xander halted, pulling back, making the swipe miss barely.

"AAH!" Xander screamed out in pain, clutching his own right arm. He pulled back and turned around, flatting himself against a wall. The snake demon hesitated for a moment to see if their injuries cancelled each other out, but the decided not to take a chance. Xander rapidly checked his bleeding upper arm, and noticed it was just a grazing wound.

It couldn't have been the fake cop that had probably shot the snake in his arm; they were outside a line of fire. Extending his awareness of the environment, he rapidly looked around, and noticed the window at the street side, the building across from it. Growling he jumped up and forward, twisting around, landing against the ceiling with his feet, and pushed back down. At the same moment a bullet hole tore in the wall where Xander had just been standing.

Xander landed on his feet again after a particularly impressive somersault, and ran for the crossroads. He jumped, ducking into the right corridor, while the blonde woman across the street fired again, hitting a rolled-up fire hose. "Upgraded to a rifle, huh, bitch," Xander hissed and ran onward, quickly formulating a plan as he painfully held his arm.

-----

Across the corridor, Kendra was fighting off the students under mind control, trying not to hurt them permanently. She was standing over Buffy, determined to protect her sister Slayer. With a roundhouse kick , she send three charging students flying back to slam against a wall. She grabbed a clumsy punch and threw her own perfectly executed one, making the girl slump to the ground unconscious. She took a look over at the vicious battle between werecat and demon, and the demon seemed to be winning. From the side came another student holding a fire extinguisher to smash her brains in with, and she grabbed the arms, pulling onward and tossing the boy into another one. As she started to feel her own mental defenses erode under the demon's telepathic onslaught, she kicked Buffy. "Come on, Buffy, snap out of eet, we need to help out Jenny and make de theeng withdraw its mind," Kendra told the blonde girl desperately. "Eet will hurt your friends," Kendra added, tossing aside a student once again revived from its unconsciousness. She winced as the girl slammed against the wall with her head, and muttered, "I ope you don't have brain damage."

Below her, Buffy's eyes snapped open, as Kendra's sentence about her friend filtered through her painful mind. She gritted her teeth, as rage over her friends burned through her mind, keeping the demon's mind at bay. She rose to her feet with her teeth visibly clenched shut. "RAH!" she yelled slamming her fist into the wall, making a nice star. She turned around to face the battle between Jenny and the demon, and she growled out, "Let's kick its ass, Kendra."

Kendra grinned, and said, "I was 'oping you'd say dat." The two nodded at each other, and jumped over a new wall of charging students, while behind them Willow smiled with satisfaction, still a little magic swishing around her. The students that came at them from the front, now collided with the students that came at them from their back, making the mindless puppets drop comically to the ground before getting back up again.

The Slayers raced toward the demon, who just got a scratch across his chest form Jenny. With a vicious backhand to the cat woman's face, she was slammed painfully against the wall. The Slayers jumped, Buffy high, Kendra low. The mind-controlling demon blocked Buffy's flying kick, making Kendra's hit his knees. He groaned and took a stabilizing step back. Buffy came down, twisting herself around as she punched down and over its nose. "Oah!" he exclaimed at the pain, staggering back.

Kendra ran forward, and kicked out, as behind her and Buffy the mass of students started running at them. The demon deflected blow, spinning a little to its left and back. Buffy's follow up he avoided and landed a solid blow in her stomach. "Oof!" she exclaimed as she clutched her stomach and took a few steps back. Her stomach may hurt, but the buzzing in her mind was gone now.

With a growling miaow, Jenny got back into the fight, kicking out at the demon's left knee. As the demon took the leg back to avoid getting hit, Jenny suddenly jumped up with her still standing left foot, and with a hiss sliced her extended talons once more across the demon's chest. With a moan of pain he staggered back, and the students hesitated, looking confused for a moment, before starting the charge again.

The demon grabbed for Jenny's neck - a bunch from Kendra slammed against it making him let go. Kendra kicked out high, as Jenny threw a punch at the demon's stomach. The demon staggered back, and then as it righted itself it looked surprised as Buffy came jumping over the other two fighters. A moment later she kicked out with all her might, and slammed her foot in the demon's face. "AARGH!" the massive demon yelled out as it was launched of its feet, and after a painful landing slid backward a bit more. The charging students halted, looked around confused, and then blinked their eyes.

The demon gave an annoyed growl, then turning around got up, and ran out the school, muttering to himself, "That incompetent bitch, this is her fault."

-----

The blonde peered through her scope, tracking where Xander most likely went, although at the moment she only saw wall. She was moving her gun left, and saw Xander for a moment through the window of a class room, and an open door he ran past. Further left there was another opportunity, through the window of a classroom, and then a window perpendicular to that one of the same room. Xander was moving south now, he had turned. The window was big and she squeezed off a shot. The bullet was launched from the gun almost completely silent, the suppressor doing its job. Two windows broke, but she just missed him. Damn, he was fast.

A little further on he turned left; she could see it through a window as he opened a door into that room. What the hell was he doing in the bathroom?

-----

Xander opened the door of a stall, an ducked behind it. A bullet passed through the door overhead, and then slammed through the pot. Water splashed up, and covered him, turning him instantly into Lexa. "Ah, yuck!" Lexa exclaimed in annoyance, her breasts straining against the now suddenly tight shirt. "At least it smells like it was flushed."

Lexa jumped back to the middle of the toilet rooms, where a wide well was present. With quick kick its cover was off, and she jumped inside. "EEW!" Lexa exclaimed as the sewer smell assaulted her senses. A bullet slammed into the toilet's floor a moment later.

-----

"DAMN!" the blonde woman hissed out angrily. What was he up to? She moved the scope up and down toward the building she was lying on. Which way would he go? Would he actually try . . .?"

Suddenly she switched her gun back to her right, and immediately pulled her head up, her hand as well. In a quick motion she snatched a crossbow bolt from the air, and then she looked down at the library. A moment later she looked through the scope, seeing the brown-haired bunny-eared Amazon. "Lotion," the blonde hissed, as she saw the girl's eyes widen.

She quickly switched the gun back toward where the sewer would be where Harris had disappeared into. She scanned again, but she didn't see him haven come out on the street or anything. She switched back to Lotion and noticed she was about to fire again.

"Damn it," the blonde hissed, accepting that her target really was coming for her, probably via the building itself; finding a sewer exit on the bottom floor. Between the crossbow bolts, and the guy coming out the roof door directly behind her, her position just lost all tactical advantage. She couldn't shoot an emerging Xander, and stop the crossbow coming directly toward her back at the same time after all. Quickly hanging the rifle on her shoulder, she picked up her case, and ran off to her right to the edge of the building, muttering, "That lucky bitch . . . bastard." There she jumped, making an annoyed sound, and sailed high through the air before landing on the following building's roof.

Xander opened the door just then, and turned around searching for her, and found her jumping from roof to roof, just like he did escaping from the bug demon.

-----

Kendra and Buffy were checking up on the students. But all they were was banged up, a few would be black and blue for a while, but nothing major. Jenny though, had already run back to the library. Luckily, the mind control seemed to have left most of the students' memories a confused black - perhaps a few flashes here and there.

That was, except Oz, who took in the redhead of his dreams. Willow had specifically searched him out, and was knelt close by, looking concerned at the bruises forming on his body. "You tried to save me, not necessary, but . . ." Willow said with gratitude.

"Uh, ya, well, uhm . . . you really . . .?" he asked remember the energy swirling around him, it had made her look even more beautiful and sexy.

Willow smiled at him, as she continued suppressing the unnatural amounts of magic raging through her body. She looked up at Buffy and Kendra finishing their inspection, and asked them with a sour tone, "Did you have to be so rough on them?"

Kendra and Buffy came over and took in the bruised Oz. Buffy smiled at the couple, while Kendra just answered, "Eet was eider heem bruised, or me and Buffy gutted."

"So who's this?" Buffy asked with a smile, as Willow slowly helped Oz to his feet.

"This is Oz, you know, I told you about him, he got stuck with in the genius section as well," Willow explained hastily.

"Very nice to meet you," Buffy said with a far too big smirk. Willow narrowed her eyes at her friend in suspicion.

-----

"Was that . . .?" Lotion wondered, and then looked back at her mother. "Could that be . . .?"

"Be who?" Giles asked, as Cordelia attempted to bandage him. She had already torn open the pants, and looked with dread and confusion at the knives. What to do? And worse, what about her face?

Jenny came back into the library fast, and almost immediately noticed the smell of blood and where it came from. "Rupert!" she called in fear, and bounded to his side immediately. She turned to Cordelia, and said, "First aid kit, behind the counter."

"Oh, right," Cordelia answered, wanting to smash herself into her face. With all the nerves raging through her body, she had completely forgot.

She went over, and soon returned with the kit, as Lotion and Deo came over, Giles still looking questioningly at them. They stayed silent, as Jenny went to work on safely removing the knives from Giles' flesh.

A few moments later Buffy, Kendra and Willow came back into the library. "Oh, my god! What happened?" Buffy exclaimed in shock as she saw Jenny remove the first knife, and immediately put pressure above the wound to halt the much more gushing wound now. With her other hand she already pulled out the prepared a needle and thread.

"There was another assassin; three actually," Deo informed Buffy who looked stricken. "Apart from the knife wielding bitch here, Xander went after the snake, and a blonde woman with a gun was across the street."

"Yeah, look at my face!" Cordelia exclaimed indignantly, pointing at the scar. Kendra immediately took a few first aid supplies and maneuvered Cordelia over to a chair.

"Seet," Kendra told her, and a confused Cordelia did so. Buffy and Willow looked astonished as the Slayer started with cleaning Cordelia's wound, which had already stopped bleeding.

Buffy crunched her face, and she asked friendly, "Let me guess: Slayer handbook?"

Kendra looked back at Buffy for a moment, before turning back to examining and treating Cordelia's wound. She answered her, "Knowing how to treat wounds can save lives, innocents', your watcher's, and your own should you need it."

Lexa came into the library, having completely forgotten about the bleeding arm, and said, "Damn it, both got away." The sleeve of his shirt on his right arm was red.

Kendra jumped up immediately, and went into a stance. When everyone looked confused, she asked Buffy, "Anoder friend?"

"Not another, you've already met her," Willow answered Kendra.

"Actually, Willow," Lexa said with a sultry town and took two steps forward, swaying her entire body, "I don't think she has, but I can tell you, Kendra, I'm a sweetheart." She gave the girl a wink, and the Slayer was even more confused.

Lexa looked over the counter, and grinned; Giles was always good for some war tea water. She dipped her hand in the water boiler and it indeed was still warm. She then brought the hands to her face and dipped it in the water. Lexa grew a little taller, her shoulders widened, her hips narrowed jut a bit, and Xander grinned at Kendra, telling her, "Hi."

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!" Kendra screamed out in shock.

Deo nodded as Kendra finished her screaming, then said, "Jusenkyo indeed great curse."

Xander chuckled as Jenny continued her treating of Giles wounds. He spoke, "I fell into the Cursed Spring of the Drowned Girl. Cold water makes me a girl, warm a guy again." Deo reached Xander and pointed out his wound to him. He looked confused at it for a moment, and then remembered. He allowed her to move him to a seat, where he sat down, and she started examining the wound.

Kendra nodded slowly, and then turned back to Cordelia, continue her treatment much, much too calmly. Willow and Buffy smiled at each other, and Cordelia turned her glare to Xander. She pointed at the wound, and told him, "I haven't quite figured out why yet, Xander, but I know this is somehow your fault!"

Xander blinked at her as Deo got some of the first aid stuff. "Me?" Xander exclaimed in surprise. "They're assassins, and I didn't hire them. How is that my fault: if you didn't have the hots for me, trying to seduce me, you wouldn't be here?"

"I _/knew/_ it!" Cordelia told him with a glare.

Xander rolled his eyes, and told her, "That won't even leave a scar. At most a white line, which just one layer of makeup will cover up, you usually where ten." Cordelia growled.

"Hold steell, or eet will be much beegger," Kendra told Cordelia, which promptly shut her up.

Giles spoke up as Jenny started on treating the second wound. "Will one of you two finally tell me who you saw?"

They looked from him to the Amazons. Mother and daughter looked at each other, and then Lotion replied, "Several years ago, an Amazon named Oilay stole a holy artifact. She was caught, the artifact retrieved, but she managed to escape and left the tribe - the blonde sniper looked a lot like her, and she moved like us as well."

"Shit," Willow muttered with a little fear, "So now we have a super strong Amazon after us as well, just great."

"She's not as strong as I am," Deo added carefully, looking around the occupants of the library, "Just a little stronger than Lotion."

"And that matters what, exactly?" Willow requested annoyed, and a moment later a mass off flowers came falling from the ceiling, quickly covering everyone and the library floor and tables. Flowery looks of annoyance turned to Willow, and giving an apologetic wave she said, "Hih-hih, sorry."

Giles groaned, and everyone but Kendra and Cordelia looked over to see Jenny start to stitch his second wound. Kendra had finished cleaning Cordelia's wound, and placed a gauze on it, sticking it to her face with a few pieces of tape. Cordelia felt the gauze, and grimaced - her beautiful face.

Xander was irritated. Several times there had been attempts on his life and friends, and he had taken out only one of the assassins. Six of them were still out there, and they could come back anytime they wanted to. He shook his head a bit, as Giles gave another groan. Xander noticed Lotion standing off to the side, next to her mother. She no longer had the ears tucked underneath a hat, and he noticed her sadness. Slowly he inched toward her as Giles spoke up to keep himself distracted from the needle entering and re-entering his flesh, "We need to take the fight to them, we can't sit here waiting for them to try and kill us again."

Xander wasn't exactly in love with Lotion, but he definitely had feelings for her. He considered her a friend, one of 'his girls', she was also highly attractive. So there was a little more than friendship, a 'potential'. He took in her sad form, and then gently put an arm around her waist. When she looked up startled, her eyes brightened a bit, enjoying his arm. At the same time, Buffy spoke deeply concerned, "With 'we', you mean 'us', as in 'we minus you', right, Giles? There's no way you're walking, much less fighting like that for the next few weeks."

Giles gritted his teeth, and focused on the problem at hand. "We have several problems, if one could be solved we could possibly solve all of them," Giles said with pained face. "First, we don't know where Spike's lair is. Second, the ritual must be held at a church, and we have no idea which. There are forty-three churches in Sunnydale, so once the sun sets, we can't possibly search them all before Spike completes the ritual. Third, is that he needs Drusilla's sire, but we don't know who that is. Fourth is the Order."

"Sire?" Buffy questioned with dread. "As in, the vamp that made her?"

"Indeed," Deo supplied casually. They all looked at Buffy.

Buffy looked around the library for a moment, and then said, "Angel, that is Angelus made Drusilla."

"Shit," Xander muttered annoyed.

Buffy walked resolutely over to the phone, and called. Everyone looked at her with bated breath. After a while she put the phone on the hook, and said, "He's not home. They must have gotten him." Buffy turned to Giles, as Jenny finished the stitches. "Will this- . . . will this ritual- . . ." Buffy started in fear.

"-kill him, I'm afraid so, Buffy," Giles answered her gravely.

Everyone was silent, as Buffy looked down. Emotion coiled around her. Fear, helplessness, pain. Spike had Angel! She loved Angel! He tried to have Xander killed! She loved Xander! Down on the floor there was a sudden purring, and then watched as Jenny was rubbing her body like a feline against an embarrassed Giles and then started kissing him.

"Get a room," Cordelia told them rolling her eyes.

Suddenly Buffy looked up, a cold look on her face. "That does it!" she hissed out angrily. "I'm done. No more Miss Nice Slayer!" Everyone looked at her with wide eyes at her outburst, but she wasn't done yet. "I'm going to kill Spike, I'm going to tear him limb from limb. He can try and kill me, that's fine. He can send assassins after me, no problem - **-but nobody messes with my boyfriends and lives!-**"

"Boyfriend_/s/_?" everyone but Cordelia exclaimed. Xander was both annoyed at being just one of two and extremely happy that Buffy actually called him her boyfriend.

Before Buffy could answer though, Cordelia finally lost her cool. "Boyfriends?" she snapped angrily. "Boyfriends? That's it?" She took a few steps forward and pointed at the bandaged side of her. "You see this?" Cordelia screamed furiously. "Take a number. After I'm done with the bitch who did this, the bastard who hired her is going down." She whirled around and walked over to the weapons cage, attempting to open the locked door. She twisted around again, and hissed, "Giles, keys!"

"Uh!" Giles started.

"Now!" Cordelia yelled, making everyone look at her with wide eyes. A moment later a bundle of keys flew through the air. Cordelia caught them, found the right key and opened it. She entered, took two short swords from the wall, and stalked back out of the cage. She swung the swords around, making several expert slashes, thrusts and twirls. Grinning dangerously she muttered barely audible, "Just like riding a bike."

"Uh, Cordelia?" Xander asked a little nervously, taking a step forward, letting go of Lotion. "I can't remember teaching you swords . . . in fact, _/I/_ don't know swords."

Cordelia's teeth were bared as the dangerous grin refused to leave her face, and she said, "When I was little, my parents forced me to take a 'high-class' sport for several years. I could choose between ballet, golf . . . and fencing. Take a guess. The teacher taught me a bit more than just a foil, thank god. I'm sure your training will help with this too." Then Cordelia looked confused at the swords, looking down at her skirted outfit. "I just need a place to put them . . ."

-----

Angel was bound to a bed, arms spread wide to the two poles. Drusilla poured holy water from a cup over his chest. His skin sizzled and smoked, and he screamed out in pain. There were more marks of where Drusilla had been torturing him earlier.

"Daddy," Drusilla singsonged. "I remember my daddy, he was nice. Then you ripped out his throat." She poured some more of the offending water, making Angel scream in pain once again.

"Oh!" Drusilla suddenly exclaimed, and looked up happily, lightheaded. Then she turned and walked out of the bedroom. Outside she found Spike, their minions, and all but one of the Terakan assassins. The blonde Amazon was to the right, next to her stood a smiling bug guy. A bit further on stood a woman in cop's clothing, then a red demon. At the left there was the snake demon, who was poking with tweezers in the wound of his arm.

"You failed again," Spike murmured with great annoyance. "So what's the bloody excuse this time?"

The red demon growled and turned to the cop woman. "Her." His hand reached out, grabbed her by the throat, and walking forward and he slammed her against the wall. "She screwed all of this up."

"Try it," the cop wheezed out through the tight grip. The demon felt something called and looked down, seeing the gun under his chin. "And we get to see which is faster, strangling or a trigger finger."

The snake demon gave out a strangled curse, and then he pulled a bullet from the wound. Once it was removed, the bullet hole he inspected started to heal steadily, but slowly. "I had him," he growled out, and then flashed its snake eyes at the cop still held above the floor, "I was just about to sink my fangs into his neck, when . . ." He held up the bullet while pausing, before finishing, "this is your bullet, you amateur hussy."

The snake seemed ready to finish what the red demon started, when Drusilla interrupted. She had hands to her head, and whimpered, "Pain. It hurts when such nice friends attack each other . . ."

"Dru," Spike said quickly coming over, as the assassins and the minions watched.

Drusilla's eyes opened again, and for a moment blazing with non-existent strength, she added, "must not, must kill bad guys, must kill nasty Slayer and friends."

Spike nodded, and flashed the Dinoano demon a look, and humoring his employer he put the woman down. The final assassin came struggling into the room next to the Cobra. He and Drusilla looked over and saw her watching them. She straightened up painfully, held her hands in front of her stomach and started chanting. Her hands lit up green, then a lot of small green light balls flew from her hands into her stomach. After a few moments of this, she stopped, and stretched. Then she told Spike, "You hired me to kill the Amazon, you however did not mention the mother is ten times stronger, faster, and more agile than her daughter is. That, annoys me."

"I could have told you that," the blonde amazon spoke up with a grin.

Spike angrily blew air out through his nose, and then turned to the blonde, "And why didn't you, or better yet, why did _/you/_ fail?"

"I did not fail, I just have yet to succeed," she answered him flatly, and finished, "that Harris kid must be the luckiest son of a bitch this side of the equator, hell, in the world. Luck goes only so far, he will go down next time."

The cobra hissed, then said, "It will take about an hour before this is healed, then I'll finish what I started."

"Oh, I like our new friends, Spike," Drusilla muttered pressing her hand against his shoulder.

Spike breathed out in irritation, and said, "You heard her, you bloody wankers. You just stay here and come with us, guard the church and the ritual - I'd like to see the them try and stop us with all of you present." He then turned around, and led his beloved back to the bedroom.

-----

Buffy and Kendra were in Giles' office. Buffy was wearing black workout pants with a white line and a blue spaghetti-strapped shirt. Buffy was angrily cutting a stake as Kendra looked outside through the windows. There Buffy's friends were busy trying to figure out where Spike could be, or which church he might be using. A few who had mass that night had fallen off, but there were still too many to manually search after night fall, and they didn't have enough people to stake them all out. Stake out? That had to be a cosmic irony? Or did a Slayer actually come up with the phrase to begin with. "Ah, now dat's going to be bugging me all day," Kendra complained with a little annoyance.

"What is?" Buffy asked her counterpart without looking up from the forming stake.

"'Stake out.' Wheder a Slayer tought dat up or not," Kendra answered Buffy.

Buffy grinned at the Slayer, and told her, "I get that too sometimes."

Kendra sighed and looked back outside. "Your friends are crazy, in about a hundred ways," Kendra said, taking in the oddball crew. Buffy frowned and then looked up, about to ask whether she meant that as an insult, but Kendra continued with a smile, "I can see why you feet so well togeder. Boyfriend_/s/_?"

"Ah, well," Buffy replied a nervous, yet a happy smile on her face, "It's a long story."

"Hmm, would 'you're a pervert', about sum eet up?" Kendra asked her pointedly. "A vampire?"

"Uh, yeah, well . . ." Buffy started nervously, then brightened, "Xander's got four, girlfriends that is."

"Four?" Kendra asked with eyes bugging out.

Buffy smirked, and clarified, "Me, Willow, Cordelia and Lotion all want him, and he's dating all of us. See, I'm not so bad."

"Yeah, Xander . . ." Kendra started then nervously looked down.

Buffy paused her stake making, and asked, "What? He's hot?"

Kendra swallowed, looking up at Buffy panicked while she said, "Well . . . dat ees . . . kinda . . . muscles . . . but . . ." Buffy just looked amused at Kendra. "I'm not allowed to talk to boys - they are a deestraction."

"Can't your parents put a stop to that?" Buffy asked the exotic Slayer immediately.

"My parents?" Kendra asked surprised. "My parents gave me up to de Watchers when I was three. Dat's how serious dey took de calling." Buffy looked appalled at Kendra. "You do not ave to feel sorry for me, I don't feel sorry for me. Dey tought dey did right thing for me, and I guess for de world."

"I guess," Buffy sad sadly looking down at her almost finished stake. "I couldn't miss my mother and my friends. They're amazing, sometimes I feel completely inadequate compared to them."

"So do I," Kendra replied looking intently at Lotion researching something in a book, "She ees so strong; I almost can't believe eet's natural, what you just showed will actually make me dat strong, and not some dark magic."

"Well, it will," Buffy said, frowning. She looked back up, and said, "You don't get it, at all. Xander is stronger than Lotion."

"What?" Kendra asked shocked.

Buffy nodded, and explained, "And what you felt is nothing. That bunny thing, if she's normal, one punch would have put you unconscious . . . or at least wish you were." Buffy gave Kendra a pointed look, and said, "I got hit by her before they trained me, so I know, trust me. Deo though, she's even more powerful than Xander, like ten times or so." Kendra looked with wide eyes at Buffy. Buffy grinned and added, "And we can get that strong as well, but that's not what I was talking about." Buffy looked down, and then explained, "Look at them. They fight because they chose to, not because they were chosen. Then they cheer me up, and look at me like I'm some grand champion or hero . . ." Buffy frowned and then looked back up. Smiling she added, "Although I suppose that last has been going down lately. They're starting to see me as just a friend, I guess."

"We should be going after Drusilla, not save your vampire boyfriend," Kendra said suddenly. There, she had finally said it. She was about to say something earlier, but Cordelia's outburst had interrupted her train of thought then.

Buffy stood up straighter and narrowed her eyes at Kendra. "Saving Angel means we're going after Drusilla," Buffy whispered dangerously, "They are the same thing, but if they weren't, we'd still be going after Angel."

"So eet's true den, a boyfriend does distract you," Kendra returned, growing angry.

"I don't care," Buffy returned angrily.

Kendra nodded, and growled, "Den you are right, you certainly are not a hero."

Buffy was about to return a more deadly statement, when the door opened and Xander casually walked in. "Excuse me, lovely ladies," Xander said with a big grin, looking from one to the other for a moment. Then he walked forward. He maneuvered smoothly around Giles' desk, and went to one of the metal cabinets in the back, right in the middle of Buffy and Kendra. He opened one drawer, and then stopped. He looked to a silent Buffy, and then turned his head to look at an even more silent Kendra. The exotic Slayer looked down, then carefully angled her head up just a bit to take a peak, and swallowed when she noticed Xander examining her.

Buffy took a few steps forward and placed her hand on Xander's back. He figured something out, and asked, "Uh, so why are you looking at the ground."

"You . . . you . . . you're a . . . boy," Kendra struggled out.

Confused, Xander muttered, "I could splash some water on me."

Buffy giggled, and then explained, "Her watcher forbade her to talk to boys, they are apparentlee a deestraction." Kendra glared at Buffy.

Xander's eyes rose in even greater confusion, and more so when he took in Kendra's apparel. Lovely makeup, large earrings, tight pants, and an even tighter top that left her midriff bare, and was low enough there was a hint of cleavage - not that the tightness required cleavage to show off her lovely breasts. Something was filtering at Xander's consciousness, but he could quite figure out what it was, and so he asked instead, "So what if you're a lesbian?"

Buffy's eyes widened at that, her mouth quirking in a smile, and then Kendra said confused, "A what?"

Kendra's expression and question were comical, and Xander's dead on dry comment on how that measure couldn't keep the problem away, was even more so. Buffy burst out in giggles and laughter, partly doubling over, and only holding onto Xander's back kept her somewhat upright. Xander turned to her, and looked with confusion at the blonde Slayer, who only slowly got herself under control. While Buffy was still busy, Xander shrugged and explained to Kendra, "You know, a girl that likes other girls."

"Dat happens?" Kendra asked surprised, and Buffy's laughter grew worse again, but only a little bit.

Finally the blonde put herself under control and turned to one of the guys she designated 'boyfriend'. She pulled him down, and before she realized what she was doing, she planted a sweet kiss on his lips, feeling the heat of his lips in the touch. As Xander righted himself, he looked down at Buffy and said, "Wow. It's been a long time since we've done that . . . have we even done that?"

Buffy blinked, and remembered the hot, fiery, passionate kisses they shared, and the even hotter, passionate and sweaty sex . . . but no gentle sweet, loving kisses. She gave a tiny shudder at the remembered encounter, and then quickly answered, "No, I don't think we have."

Kendra looked with total confusion at Buffy and Xander, and finally said, "You two are weird."

"See!" Xander said happily, "You can talk to a boy after all!" Xander went back to the drawer and looked through it.

"Hey, Xan?" Buffy asked slowly.

"Yeah."

"We're gonna save Angel, right?" Buffy asked him just a bit uncertain.

Xander sighed as Kendra frowned. "Sure," Xander said friendly, burning with jealousy at the inside, as well as rage. How anyone could love a corpse was beyond him.

"Angel!" Kendra called out suddenly, remembering. The other two looked at her. "He was threatening de weasel at de bar, I just tought he wanted to eet him, but - if Angel's good . . ."

"Than that bastard isn't a friend," Buffy said with a huge, predatory grin. "Which probably means he knows where they're going to have the ritual."

"You teenk he'll tell us where eet ees?" Kendra asked Buffy.

Grinning widely, Buffy answered, "I teenk we mite make im." Then they turned and headed for the office door.

Xander followed them out, and he said, "You two realize how scary you two are like that was, right? Not to mention hot as hell."

The Slayers didn't listen as Buffy headed straight for the door, saying, "I figured it out, Giles. It's the dirtbag in the bar. Come on, guys, we'll have Angel back in no time."

"Hold on a moment," Giles stated resolutely from his chair at the main table. Buffy took a few more steps as Kendra stood still right away.

When she noticed nobody was following her, Buffy turned around, and said, "What?"

"Most of the day has passed, and there have been no more attacks, Buffy," Giles explained carefully. "That probably means Spike is keeping the assassins with him to guard the ritual. Just finding the site is not enough, you need a strategy, and I have just the thing . . ." Giles outlined his basic idea and everyone nodded.

"Good," Deo said and took center stage, "then I shall lead."

"Why? You're putting Willow through that, attacked Xander," Buffy listed off pissed, and decided to quit the rest of the list for speed purposes. "I should lead this mission."

Cordelia huffed, and quickly got in, "And you hogging the bitch for yourself no doubt. I should- . . ."

Willow coughed exceptionally loud, and everyone looked over at her. "Remember last time we had this problem, we had a simple solution," Willow said and pointed at Xander.

The others looked over to him. "Me?" Xander asked a little nervously, and then looked at Willow's confidence filled face. "Oh, okay, I guess . . ."

-----

Buffy and Kendra burst in through the door of the bar. Willy - just next to his counter - looked frightened as he saw the two dangerous, and beautiful girls come at him. He turned around to run, and he did, but the Slayers were much faster. They crossed the distance in no time at all, and Buffy grabbed him in the back of his jacket. "Alright sleaze ball," Buffy growled at him, and flung him toward the bar counter. She walked over and grabbed him again.

"I didn't do anything," Willy whimpered, hands up in innocent defense.

"Where's Angel?" Buffy hissed at him, pissed.

Willy once more whimpered out, "I don't know I swear."

Buffy pulled her hand back ready for a punch as Kendra stayed back a bit. "Quite lying, you bastard. Where are they holding the ritual!" Buffy told him angrily bringing her hand threateningly forward.

"They didn't tell me, I don't know," Willy tried desperately.

"Just hit heem, Buffy," Kendra told the blonde.

"Last chance," Buffy growled, and Willy looked much more frightened now.

Willy hesitated and Kendra took a step forward, saying, "Alright, I'll do it."

Buffy smirked at Willy as Kendra came into view of the snitch, looking extremely dangerous and pissed off. "She wants to hit," Buffy growled angrily.

Willy nodded, "Okay, okay, okay! I'll tell ya, I'll tell ya!" Buffy eased her grip and lowered her arm again.

"Where?" Buffy requested, pulling him at the collar of his jacket to the middle of the bar.

"I can't tell you," Willy started, seeing the dangerous frowns on the slayer, and see he continued without missing a beat, "I'll have show you."

"Alright, let's go!" Buffy said, grabbing the sleazy man and pulling him toward the exit.

"Wait, we have to go back to our watcher for orders," Kendra told Buffy.

"I don't take orders," Buffy spat back.

Kendra's eyebrows raised and told her, "No wonder you died."

"Listen," Buffy said angrily to the other Slayer, "right now, they could be killing Angel, and I'm going to stop it. You can either come with me, or stay here. I'm not going to let Angel die." With Willy in tow, Buffy left the bar.

Frustrated Kendra called after her, "He _/should/_ die. Why am I the only who sees that?"

-----

"Here it is," Willy told Buffy as he led her into the beige-stoned church. "See, remember that your friend Willy always comes through in a snitch."

The two bent left, and soon reached another door that entered the inner church itself on its corner. Suddenly three vampires appeared from the door, and three more from a niche behind Buffy. Buffy looked around shocked, as Willy said, "Here's the Slayer. See, remember your friend Willy always comes through in a snitch."

-----

Inside the church, Drusilla and Angel were chained together just in front of the altar. Drusilla's left hand was wrapped into Angel's right hand, and that's where they were tied together. The Terakan assassins stood in several positions around the place. The red Dinoano demon stood in the middle, amidst the church benches, while the others were spread around, apart from Oilay, she was nowhere to be seen. Further there were vampire minions spread around as well. The church was light beige on the inside like it was on the outside, oil worked windows everywhere; paintings of Jesus' last ordeal around the place. Candles burned in several positions, most notably around the altar area. Spike walked around, spraying incense from a golden vaporizer to the four corners of the earth, while speaking an ancient tongue. Having done the corner in the right in front of the two strung up vampires, he moved over to the left, where he chanted onward. Done, he put the vaporizer down and he walked over to vampire and sire. Chanting again, he pulled a stake, and rammed it through the hands of the two. Angel groaned, while Drusilla gave a pleasurable moan, then a bright white light emitted from the stake and their hands, then died down. Angel continued to groan.

"Right," Spike drawled with a pleasant tone, "Now we just let it simmer till it boils, and yum, yum."

"Hey, Spike," Willy called as he entered the church, while Buffy escorted by several vampires came in after him. "I came for the reward."

"WHY DID THE HELL DID YOU BRING THE BINT HERE, YOU SOD!" Spike yelled out angrily.

Willy looked intimidated, and said, "You said you wanted her."

"Dead! I wanted her dead!" Spike yelled at him pissed off.

"S-sorry, I thought dead or alive," Willy said backing away a bit.

Buffy's gaze had been locked on Angel all the time, and finally couldn't keep quiet. "Angel," she said with dread.

Spike looked back for a moment, then returned to Buffy, and said, "Yeah, I hate to see him like this too, luv. On the bright side, he'll be dust in five minutes." Buffy glared at Spike angrily. "Will someone kill her already?" Spike asked impatient.

-----

Outside was Xander, leading the group of warriors of light, minus Giles and Buffy who was already inside. "Outer guards first," Xander said crouched behind a bush. He nodded backward, and the returned the gesture. Then they made a beeline to the entrance of the church. They entered and the split up in two groups. Cross bow bolts flew, and a moment later there were a few piles of ashes.

Xander took in the church, quickly, hoping their faith, especially Willow's in him was justified. He found the soldier's memories of tactics and strategy coming to him easily. He checked the outer hallway, which lead forward on both sides of the church. There was the inner sanctum, Xander realized, and a corridor going fully around hit. Most likely a few exits to allow the mass of people normally inside back out. No doubt the corridor would lead even around the back - or front, depending on how you looked at it - but was likely closed off. No matter, he doubted the old doors could hold back an Amazon. "Alright," Xander said and everyone listened. His heart beat in his chest, and continued, "If I had a sniper in my team, I'd place her in the middle in the front or the back on the second floor, that way anyone who goes in can be shot right away," Xander said resolutely; shoving away his self-doubt. "Lotion, can you take your sister Amazon?"

Lotion nodded determinately, her hat having fallen off on her way running from the bushes, so her ears were up. Xander accepted the answer, trusting that Lotion wasn't making herself feel better, and so he said, "You go take the rifle away from the sniper then, as other ranged weapons. Only when she's not able to shoot, can we go inside."

They all nodded. Xander got out a whistle, gave it to Lotion, and told her, "Three quick bursts is the signal she can't shoot anymore."

"Got it," Lotion said, taking the whistle, and then rapidly ran off taking the right side corridor.

"All right, this is how we're going to play it . . ." Xander muttered out, his fingers tingling.

-----

Lotion quickly navigated the church, dispatching two more vampires on the way. She reached a door leading to the left. Three was another door forward leading to the priest's or reverent's residence. She quickly kicked the on to the left in. There was a staircase going, up, and Lotion rapidly went up. This was a small room, just next to the highest part of the crucifix. A small niche leaning into the church, and having a hole through which would could see inside the church. The room was some three meters long, and one wide. At the hole sat a blonde woman, the rifle stuck through the hole. "Oilay," Lotion put all her effort into the snarl.

Surprised the Amazon looked up, and said, "Lotion." With quick movement, Lotion pulled her nunchakus from her back and sped forward. As the blonde got up, she pulled the rifle back to aim at Lotion, but she was too fast. Two luscious bodies collided together, and Lotion wrapped her nunchakus around the rifle, wrenched, and sent it skittering to the floor. A punch to her face was the reward for her effort. As she staggered back, she grabbed Oilay by her collar, and pulled her along, backward, till the both of them rolled down the stairs. Painfully their bodies banged against the stairs. Once they were down, they scrambled back to their feet, and Lotion quickly brought the whistle to her mouth. She blew three powerful times quickly.

-----

"Will someone kill her already?" Spike asked impatient.

The cop drew her gun with a grin, and started aiming it at Buffy. Three shrill whistles sounded suddenly. They all looked up, except for Buffy. With a vicious kick, Buffy beat the gun out of the woman's hand, as Spike muttered, "What the bloody hell?" She followed up with another one, sending the woman tumbling away from her, and then two doors opened. In came Kendra, Willow, Deo, and Jenny. Xander remained with the door, as a third one opened at the front, emitting Cordelia. Willow, Deo, and Jenny wasted no time staking vampires as they made their way to the mind control demon, who casually stayed standing, waiting for them with a smirk. Willy in the meanwhile, did everything he could do to sneak away.

"Hey, larvae boy," Xander called and the bug guy turned to face him, grinned and then quickly walked at Xander.

In the front, Cordelia pulled out her swords from her back, and said, "Hey, sword bitch, you're going to pay what you did to me."

The mistress of the swords turned to her, pulled her own, and said, "Oh, I'm sorry, but I forgot my wallet." With a yell she attacked, their swords clanging together.

Kendra jumped over Buffy, dropping a stake, and flying feet first into Spike who was launched back. Buffy caught the stake and dusted two vampires right away, and followed up with two more. Then she moved over to Kendra where Spike rose to his feet. "Who the sodding hell are you?" Spike asked in confusion.

"It's your lucky day, Spike, two Slayers, no waiting," Buffy told him with a grin as she and Kendra advanced on him, "You get to face the weaker opponents here, you might actually get lucky."

Both Slayers kicked out, and Spike blocked Kendra's, but Buffy's hit him and he staggered back. From the side the cop lady got back up, pulled a knife and running over a bunch of benches she attacked Buffy. The blonde turned to face her new attacker and grabbed the woman's wrists before the knife could hit. The fake cop then slammed her knee in Buffy's stomach.

Deo landed a solid blow on the mind-control demon, and he was flung back, crashing through the benches. With a growl he got up, and blocked a slash from Jenny, pushing her back.

As Willow grabbed a vampire's fist and twisted him aside, slamming a stake in his heart, Xander closed the doors. He grabbed a bottle of glue that he had standing next to it, and poured it on the ground. The bug guy transformed in his component parts and came through the crack underneath the door, right into the glue. Right away Xander started crushing the mealworms. After several seconds of doing that, he was pretty certain the demon was dead.

"I think our business got rudely interrupted, twice over, don't you agree?"

Xander twisted to his right and saw the snake demon standing there, its snake eyes glowing. It had come through the second door, and Xander said, "Oh, yeah, let's finish this."

The demon grew some twenty centimeters in size and lashed out its arms, stretching out. Xander blocked the first, and twisted in between the arms, avoiding the second. The arms crossed and came back, attempting to catch Xander. He jumped though, over the arms, and kicked out viciously across the snake's face, it's wide outstretched Cobra hood flapping as its entire body jerked sideways. With a yell, Xander landed another kick in its snake body, before a backhand sent Xander flying and slamming in the wall, making him groan in pain. With all his speed and effort he twisted off the wall and away before the demon's hand crashed into the wall where he had been with a roar. Chunks of wall came tumbling down, and Xander kicked the demon in the shoulder, making it flying back, and roaring in pain. Xander stalked toward it.

-----

Lotion looked hatefully at her fellow Amazon, wearing the short skirt, and told her, "You joined an assassins order working alongside demons. You have dishonored all Amazons, I will restore it with your death."

Oilay laughed out loud, before replying, "_/I/_ have dishonored all Amazons? Have you looked in the mirror lately? You're a bunny."

With a roar Lotion jumped forward, swiveling her one remaining nunchakus at Oilay, but the blond ducked coming forward. She came up, slamming her head devastatingly into Lotion's chin, while grabbing the right arm which held the weapon. With a quick slamm of her forearm to Lotion's inner elbow, the brunette was made to let go of her weapon. Lotion slammed her knee into Oilay's stomach, then slammed her fist forward, landing easily on Oilay's two armed block. A rapid jab came from the blonde, which the brunette barely avoided. Lotion jumped slightly, and kicked high, twisting around. Oilay ducked and slammed both her hands into Lotion's stomach. Lotion rammed painfully against the wall, which cracked around her shape. She moved forward, punching with her left fist, but Oilay blocked it. Lotion twisted around, making a vicious roundhouse backhand. Oilay smoothly ducked underneath it, and successfully landed an uppercut, making lotion fly back.

Oilay flashed forward, and drew a sword from a side sheath. The curved blade sliced down, and Lotion just barely rolled aside. With a vicious kick to the blonde's hand the brunette forced the sword out of the equation. Lotion got up, and walked into a powerful left punch that smashed on her chest, and she was launched off her feet.

She landed on her hands, and with a flick she was righted again. Lotion took a step forward and kicked high. Oilay ducked, and slammed a foot on Lotion's still standing knee. With a scream of pain lotion staggered back, and then fell to the ground. Oilay took a running start and slammed her right fist straight into Lotion's bunny nose, making her shove backward till stopped against the wall. Oilay growled, and smoothly retrieved her sword, then lunged forward.

-----

The cop Terakan's knife hand came down sharply at Buffy's neck. The Slayer almost casually bent back, and then with a rapid left-right-left combo sent the woman staggering back. A powerful kick to her stomach sent her flying back. To Buffy's surprise she saw the woman getting back up. She was still grabbing her stomach, but it was a testament to the woman's training she was even getting up at all.

Buffy gave a quick look back and saw how Spike landed a solid blow to Kendra's face, following it up with a kick to her face. She blocked the following swipe and managed to land a punch in Spike's stomach, but the master vampire recovered quickly, making a bit toward the exotic Slayer's neck. Having to draw back was enough for Spike to punch a powerful blow on Kendra's chin, while telling her, "I could do with eating another bloody Slayer." He chuckled at his own pun.

Buffy knew Kendra couldn't beat Spike, but she was pretty certain she could beat the woman who had just climbed back to her feet. "Switch," she said, and dunked moving backward. Kendra rolled over Buffy and charged forward to the woman. Kendra grabbed the hand making an underhand cut, and bent it out of the way, as she rammed her right fist into the woman's chin with a roar. The woman's head snapped sideways, and she staggered back, but she already recovered.

Meanwhile Spike told Buffy, "I much rather be fighting you anyway."

"Same here," Buffy told him, and threw a left. Spike grabbed the punch and threw her over his shoulder. Buffy landed on her back, but immediately kicked up in Spike's face, making him stagger back. Buffy jumped back up, her feet first and then pulling her body up. She threw a right, which Spike blocked, and the Slayer twisted around to the left. She blocked Spike's next kick, and he grabbed her left fist. He did the same with the right coming after, and he grinned as Buffy tried to pull her hands back uselessly. Then she suddenly jumped forward and slammed her forehead in his nose. "ARGH!" Spike exclaimed as he fell back.

-----

Two swords clanged against two other swords. Cordelia twisted hers down, forcing the assassins down with her. With a yell, she pulled the upper one back and made a swipe at the assassin's neck. The assassin blocked the hit with her own sword, and then they tested their strength, one sword down at the floor, Cordelia's right, high up. Their faces wee close together, both grimacing. "You're good," the assassin admitted, "but not good or strong enough."

"Save for the other side after I cut off your head, bitch," Cordelia snarled back, as they were fighting in front of the door she had gotten into. With a quick twist and a kick, the assassin made Cordelia stagger out the door and fall to her ass. The cheerleader quickly moved her swords to in front of her, blocking the downward arc of the assassin's swords. Cordelia kicked the S&M mistress in her stomach, giving her time to get up. She twisted to her left while bringing her up to deflect the assassin's blow. Twisting her swords onward she unbalanced the assassin and made a stab at the woman's kidney. The assassin twisted out of the way and brought one sword down at Cordelia's jugular. The cheerleader deflected it with her left sword, while twisting aside and slicing with her right at the assassin's side. There the Terakan's other sword met hers. The assassin twisted rapidly around, swords screeching against each other. The right sword slung around, as the left stayed against Cordelia's right. Cordelia brought up her left, holding it with the blade down and out. Then Cordelia jumped back and twisted to her left, making the sword scrape against each other, and pushing the assassin away. The assassin had to take a step back.

For a moment, the two women looked at each other, breathing heavily. The assassin had thought she had had Cordelia, most people would twist the onward to the right, leaving the back fully open, but not this one. She grimaced and then attacked, twisting around her and letting the swords swivel around.

Cordelia deflected the first sword with her left, then twisted aside herself. Letting her right swivel around and slam down, where it was met with the Terakan's other sword. Cordelia twisted around, pushing the swords away. She was facing the assassin with her back now, where she laid her swords. A cling and the vibration up her arms told her the assassin had struck them. Cordelia swivelled once more around, keeping the swords facing the assassin though. The cheerleader thanked her cheerleading practices as she let both swords swivel about, one downward and one upward, both meeting a sword from the Terakan with a clang. The sword mistress moved her right sword up and lunged forward. Cordelia twisted back to her right, deflecting the blow with her right sword. Twisting around again she met the Terakan's left blade with her own left, and she continued her rapid turn. She brought both swords together again and slammed the down. The assassin blocked it with her left sword, and continued her own turn bringing her right down rapidly. Cordelia turned rapidly back, bringing her left sword to meet the downward arcing right, and then both them turned around, back to back, and finally facing each other closely again, swords locked together.

"Cheerleading, you gotta love it," Cordelia told the assassin to get her angry enough to make a mistake.

-----

Meanwhile, Willow dusted another vampire. Just barely as the vamp had managed to push her high up against a pillar and was about to suck her dry. Coughing for breath she fell down, and managed to get up, while fires erupted around the church as a result of her near death experience.

Deo slammed a powerful foot into the red demon's back, making him double over. She followed up with a bunch that cut open his face, and made him scream in pain. He twisted and threw a powerful punch, but she smoothly twisted away, a smile on her face. This thing wouldn't stand a change, certainly not with Jenny helping out. The cat indeed sprung forth from the other side, and slashed her claws with vicious mewl across the demon's arm. His skin cut open, showing more of its yellow blood. "YOU BITCH!" the demon screamed in anger, grabbing Jenny suddenly by her face and tossing her into a couple of vamps who had decided to go for Willow. She'd be busy with them for a couple of minutes. That didn't help much though, as Deo slammed her foot into the demon's torso with all her might. Bones cracked and broke audibly and the demon was launched off its feet, flying toward Willow who got surrounded by another small group of vampires.

Ignoring the pain, the demon rapidly grabbed the vampires, and tossed the vampires at Deo, keeping her busy not much longer than a few seconds the demon estimated, but that was all he needed. It was time to finish this, and getting up it groaned in pain, rising to its full height in front of Willow, who stiffened with surprise of the demon towering over her. The demon grinned, and pointed his left hand at Willow. He poured all its might into Willow, and where earlier the quick mental shields could hold, because he had been controlling a few dozen kids, this time there was just Willow that he threw his power into, and her shield shattered like a tool shed in the way of an avalanche. Willow shuddered, and then went slack.

The demon gave a laugh, and then ordered, "Now, my sweet, use all that power of yours you seem so afraid to use, and kill your friends for me."

Willow slowly nodded, and started to gather her magic. Inside though, something happened. Inside Willow's logical mind, meticulously planned the deaths of her friend. A toad here, a lightning bolt there - she'd squash the toad later - she would let Buffy be consumed by fire. While her logical mind did that, her emotions went haywire; panic, horror, pain, love, all voiced in a single despairing emotional outrage at the depth of her being: -NOOOOOOOOO!-

Outside, as Deo's twisting of Willow's magic and chi activated, a cone of see-through black energy swivelled up around Willow like a whirlwind, her hair flying up. Instantly everything went haywire. Lightning bolts shot out from Willow everywhere, some incinerating a vampire instantly, one smoothly twisting around Jenny, another around the suddenly astonished red demon. The undirected attacks wouldn't hurt anything, but after all, the demon and Jenny were alive, the vampires weren't. More lightning bolts slammed in the stones of the church, exploding outward, debris falling down. The windows instantly shattered, sending colored glass flying inward everywhere.

"Fool," Deo muttered with a grin as she watched the shocked red demon and the witch's magic being set free.

Buffy just finished giving Spike a devastating uppercut, and sent him tumbling over a turned bench, when Willow's magic erupted, fires started everywhere, wind gripped at her being, and the windows explode inward. Buffy ducked as the glass shards flung past her. She then turned around and saw as glass shards from the large rounded window at the front of the church embedded into Angel and Drusilla and tumbled over them. "Angel!" Buffy exclaimed in shock and quickly jumped onto the altar area and ran over. She grabbed his cuffs and tried to undo them, yanking and pulling. A lighting bolt from Willow slammed into the chain that held the vampires and they fell down. Buffy went down with them to continue her efforts to get Angel free.

Kendra and the cop halted for a moment, looking over at the spectacle, as did almost everyone else. Then the cop grinned and sliced at Kendra with her knife. Only Kendra's supernatural Slayer reflexes saved her, making jump almost of her own accord backward just in time. However, it was not fast enough to keep the cop from cutting open her shirt and leaving only a shallow cut between her breast. "That's me favorite shirt!" Kendra exclaimed looking down at her shirt, holding it to inspect it. She suddenly realized something, looked up, and exclaimed, "That's me _/only/_ shirt!" She suddenly surged forward with anger, slabbed her knee into her stomach hard, while grabbing her knife arm by the wrist. Kendra twisted underneath rabidly, and a moment later she slammed the Terakan's own knife into her chest. The woman coughed once, and then dropped down. Kendra looked angrily down at the assassin.

Meanwhile, inside of Willow the battle raged on. Telepathic control, versus completely chaotic magic, which bounded from one side to the other, and casually found a completely different direction to bound into. The magic ate more and more away at the control as Willow's fury over the soon death's of her friends grew. Finally the control shattered, and Willow's rage took a hold of the witch.

Willow's eyes regained focus, and turned pitch black, not just her pupils, but even the whites turned to an oily blackness. "What the . . .?" the Dinoano demon muttered in shock, as suddenly Willow's veins become pronounced, and turned black. Her red hair turned pitch black as well.

Willow looked up at the demon; one giant coil of power. She put her right hand out and a ball of black see-through energy formed there. With an inhuman, growling voice, Willow snarled, **"-You die!-"** With a scream of rage Willow threw her right and forward, and the black energy surged forward in a deadly beam. The see-through black beam, as if a billion microscopic bats flew out from Willow's hand, slammed into the demon's body and enveloped it, blasting onward behind it. Willow's inhuman snarling scream of fury mixed with the demonic scream of pain, giving surround sound to the spectacle. The energy burned at the demon's flesh, and started disintegrating it, down the molecular level. First it's skin was torn open, yellow blood splashing forth, which was slammed backward away from Willow along the energy beam's path. Then the demon's flesh dissolved, steadily revealing its skeleton, until finally that too evaporated.

Once the demon was completely torn apart, Willow's magic suddenly shut down. The lightning bolts disappeared, and the cone of energy flashed away. Then as she dropped exhausted to her knees, her eyes, hair and veins returned to normal. Then she collapsed further down to her stomach.

Behind her, Jenny suddenly yelled, screamed and scratched, as she contorted her body. Her cat ears shrank back in her head, as did her fur and face. A moment later good old Jenny lay still on the floor. Then she looked up, took herself in, and noticed three vampire who had survived the onslaught rising next her. "Shit," she muttered as noticed her predatory instincts and superhuman agility and strength were gone as well.

Before the situation got dire though, the vampires turned to dust, three stakes dropping to the ground. Jenny looked up and saw Deo offering a hand. "That's why I didn't remove the condition, even with the demons coming after them," Deo told her with a big grin. "I knew it would sooner or later go after Willow to use her power. And if she were strong enough, worthy enough, she do exactly this." Jenny let herself be pulled up, and Deo finished, "You see, you teaching her control kept the condition going, her magic and chi constantly in a tug of war. The original test was too see if she recognized she should go somewhere and release everything she had, burning it out." Deo turned around and took in the unconscious witch. "What a rival; she may still be after my future son-in-law, but the stories of who Lotion had to beat to get to Xander, will remove any question about why she didn't get him right away." Deo nodded with satisfaction. Jenny sighed in annoyance.

-----

Oilay lunged the sword forward, directly at Lotion's heart, as explosions rang out everywhere. Oilay didn't care, closing the gap between her and the other Amazon in no time. Then Lotion's body convulsed, her ears retreated and reformed human ears, and unseen her tail shrank back. There was a slap, and suddenly Lotion's hands were slammed at either side of the blade, keeping it locked between them, the point just barely a centimeter away from her heart. Lotion's eyes snapped open and looked directly into Oilay's annoyed eyes. "No more weakened, fluffy, nice, sweet, silent, imbalanced, bunny Lotion," Lotion growled out. "Nihau." Suddenly she twisted up and over the sword, her left foot pushing off the floor. A moment later her right slammed into Oilay's stomach and she was launched off her feet. Lotion tossed the sword aside once she was up, and walked toward Oilay who groaning got up.

"You disgust me, Oilay," Lotion spoke with a wide grin as she walked over. "You couldn't beat Shampoo despite her being so much younger than you, and so you went to get shortcuts for power and skill, stealing to get what you needed. You get caught and you're tossed out, and now look at you, pitiful assassin working with demons."

Oilay growled and attacked, throwing a powerful right punch. Lotion smoothly bent back, making her miss, and grabbed the arm. She bent it back, making the blonde yell out at the pain. Lotion followed up with powerful kick to Oilay's stomach, and then an uppercut to make her fly up and away.

"You're going down, you could defeat me before, but not anymore. I won't let you," Lotion said with a smile, making Oilay grimace and spit out some blood from her bruised face. She quickly came over and started with a low kick, followed it up with a powerful left hook, which Lotion deflected. Oilay continued turning on her left leg, and swivelled her right one up. Unprepared, Lotion got the roundhouse kick full in her face. Blood drawn, and pain flaring in her cheek Lotion was launched back, slamming back against the wall, painfully cracking it.

Oilay snickered as she came at Lotion, saying, "You just got lucky."

Lotion growled and attacked, throwing a right fished that Oilay deflected. The brunette rammed her feet into Oilay's right upper leg though, making her stagger back. "That should even things out a bit," Lotion spoke, the knee Oilay had kicked earlier still making her limp a bit. Oilay made a devastating left kick, but Lotion blocked it, and then slammed both her fists into Oilay's stomach. The blonde staggered back, groaning in pain. "Now you die," Lotion hissed at her. Oilay attacked with a right punch, and Lotion grabbed it, quickly twisting herself underneath, then kicked Oilay's right knee, making her sink down. Quickly Lotion grabbed Oilay's head, the blonde's eyes widened in terror, and then with a snap her neck was broken, and she slumped down dead. Lotion then turned back and walked away.

-----

On the other side Cordelia and the assassin were in a furious exchange of blows, parries, and lunges. Twisting around, and slicing at each other, the four swords slashed, and scraped against each other over and over. It was almost a dance as the two twisted around. Swords clashing high and low, and Cordelia jumped back. The Terakan lunged forward with both swords at chest height. Cordelia swivelled her swords and placed them in between against the swords, then forced them out. She let herself fall backward and kicked with her feet into the assassin's stomach, launching her up and over her. Cordelia rolled onward to her feet, jumped up, and turned around. The assassin was up as well and blocked Cordelia's double sword strike at the side.

The assassin twisted Cordelia's blades and arms up and over her. Cordelia was now twisted bent over, but instead of two arms there, it was already one. Using her bodies maneuverability she had already twisted one sword out of the lock, and twisted her entire body to the side. The assassin wanted to push Cordelia back up, and completely unprotected slice her open. Instead though, Cordelia let the locked sword go, making the sword mistress make a stabilizing step forward, as Cordelia jumped and twisted with her remaining sword through the air. A moment later the sword sliced through the assassin's neck, while Cordelia yelled out with the exertion on her body.

Cordelia landed and saw the body seemingly balance for a moment. Then the head fell off, blood sprayed everywhere, and the Terakan's body dropped to the ground. Cordelia jumped back from the spraying blood, and waited a moment until most of the pressure was equalized. Then she walked over, and fished her blood-covered sword from the ground. Once standing she looked down, forcing away her tears and gag reflex, and said, "There can be only one, bitch." Than she spit once into the blood and walked onward to the front of the church, careful not to step into the blood.

-----

Back inside, Spike noticed Buffy with his Dru, and getting up, he snarled, "DRU!" He quickly jumped onto the altar area, and slammed his fist in Buffy's face. The Slayer, too concerned for her boyfriend, didn't see it coming, and groaned as her body slammed back. Spike pulled some keys from his leather duster, unlocked the cuffs, and quickly picked up Drusilla. He took in the devastation, all the windows gone, chucks off stone away, fire burning everywhere, the demons dead, as were most of his vampires, Willy that weasel was sneaking out the back door, and all around him were the white hats. Only one option really; run like hell. To the same left door Willy had just snuck out of. So that's what he did. Running with Drusilla in hands he jumped over a bench and ran toward the left along the organ. As Deo and Jenny were slowly picking up Willow, nobody was in his way . . . or so he thought.

Buffy had gotten up, so him running. She immediately got the vaporizer Spike had discarded earlier, and tossed it with all her might and her supernatural accuracy through the air. It slammed hard against Spike's head, and he careened of into the organ that promptly collapsed on top of him. Buffy gave a satisfied nod, quickly picked up Angel, slung him over her shoulder and jumped down, as the fires kept spreading. "Come on, Kendra, let's get out of here," Buffy said and the exotic slayer followed her.

In the middle they met Deo and Jenny, the latter was carrying Willow in her arms. "Let's go," Buffy said and the four of them got going, leaving through the door.

Once out the door they came across Xander fighting the snake demon. "Jesus," Kendra muttered in shock, looking at the amazing display. Left and right arrived Lotion and Cordelia who looked at the event the same way. Angel managed to look up just a bit, groaning with weakness and followed the fight as well.

The battle was amazing. A battered and bruised snake demon, versus a battered and bruised Xander Harris. The demon flung a rapid punch that Xander avoided barely by leaning back. The snake's tail wrapped around his feet. This time, Xander did not hesitate at all. He jumped up, continuing leaned backward, and slammed first his left and then his right foot in the snake's chin, while he flipped onward through the air, and landed two meters further back. The snake hissed in pain and staggered back. The demon wasted no time with small talk, and simply charged Xander again, its eyes now glowing with its power and anger. Xander pushed the rapid right punch aside with his left hand, and twisted himself fully around, bringing his right fist to bare in a twisting punch. The demon ducked, and twisted around as Xander brought his leg around for a spin kick. The demon grabbed Xander by the waist though, and prepared bit him with his fangs. Xander rapidly slammed a punch in the demon's nose, making it let go and stagger back. Xander struck, taking a step forward and crashing its foot in the long snake body right where it straightened up. Xander added a punch to the middle of the straight up part. The demon suddenly snapped down for a vicious bite. Just in time Xander let himself fall backward, avoiding certain death. He went into a handstand, and slung his feet up, slamming it in the demon's throat. As the snake grabbed its throat in gasped in pain, Xander finished the backward flip and then jumped up.

With a yell he stretched out his feet toward the snake's head. It quickly jumped up and over Xander, grabbing him by the shoulders and pulling both up. As both fighters tumbled about up into the air, Xander threw a vicious punch at the snake's head. It moved his head on time, and threw his own, landing it solidly on Xander's face. Xander's face reeled back from it, but kicked out hitting the demon in the head. Both started tumbling down to the floor again, and the demon managed to get a hold on Xander's ankles. He twisted and then with a roar slammed Xander onto the floor below, cracking the stone. Xander coughed, and groaned in pain, but forced himself to twist aside before the downward snap of the demon would have imbedded him with poison. With a quick motion he twisted around and slammed his feet in the section of the demon's snake body slithering on the floor. The snake growled, and watched Xander get back up.

The snake threw a punch that Xander parried, and kicked out. The snake undulated its body, making the kick miss. It swung its tail end around and Xander jumped over it, then blocked another punch, before slamming his elbow in the side of the demon's head. The demon staggered back toward a pillar, and Xander suddenly surged forward with a yell. He slammed his shoulder into the snake and pushed him onward, both leaving the ground toward the pillar. The snake grabbed Xander by the shoulders, wrapped its tail end around the pillar, and then with a yank from the tail, accelerated around it. Half-way around the pillar the demon let go of Xander, who twisted away toward the inner church wall. With extreme effort Xander landed on it with his feet, grunting with the strain, and then pushed off. The demon had removed himself from the pillar and came at Xander.

"Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire!" Xander yelled, using his ace up his sleeve at the right time. Just as he reached the demon, he started throwing over a hundred punches in a single second. The snake put its arms up in front of him, but the sheer amount of bruising punches were too much, they breached through the snake's defenses, its arms falling back. More punches followed on and then up the demon's equivalent of a chest. Xander pulled his hands up and slammed repeatedly on the snake's fangs. Cracks formed, and then they shattered under the onslaught. Xander's flight came to an end as gravity got a hold of him, but the heavily injured snake was now flying backward, screaming and hissing from the extreme pain of its shattered fangs. Xander ran forward rammed another punch in the snake's gut. Then grabbed an arm and tossed the large snake over his shoulder, slamming it on the ground.

"Rah! You!" the demon hissed out with difficulty, but Xander had already pulled his stake and slammed it down, right where in a human would be its heart. The snake pierced, the snake jerked, and then fell silent. Xander pulled the snake back out.

Heavily breathing, Xander looked down upon his defeated opponent. "Cordy, can I borrow one of your swords?" Xander asked, and Cordelia quickly came over.

"Sure," she said and handed him a sword as the fire in the inner church was now a powerful blazing inferno.

Xander took the sword and as the others got closer, he chopped off the snake's head. Xander handed the sword back over, saying to everyone, wheezing with exhaustion, "Just in case."

"Let's just get out of here, before the whole place collapses," Lotion pointed out, as some of the others took in Xander.

"Yeah," Xander said take deep slow breaths, then the left the church.

-----

"Hey, Willow," Jenny greeted from her desk, as Willow - once more in her new clothes - entered the computer room the next day.

"Hi," Willow greeted steadily. She walked over, hesitated for a moment, and then told Jenny, "When I- . . . when the magic, when I let it all out . . ." Jenny's eyebrows raised questioningly. "I wasn't me," Willow explained to Jenny, "I didn't feel like me. There was just power, just all that rage, all that hate, and darkness; I was magic, almost craving it . . . I don't ever want to feel like that again."

Jenny looked questioningly at her, and then asked, "You want to stop our training?"

"No!" Willow half-exclaimed. Then explained, "Don't worry too much with teaching me new spells and such. Control first, leave the fireballs. Absolute control, and focus on avoiding magic taking over, you know. I don't want the magic taking over, _/ever/_."

"You got it," Jenny said. Willow nodded, turned and left.

-----

"Hey, Cordelia, we need to talk," Xander said, catching up to the cheerleader. Still somewhat bruised, he gestured toward and empty classroom, avoiding the other students milling about.

"Okay," Cordelia answered subdued and they went inside.

"So?" Cordelia asked him.

Xander took a deep breathe, and started, "Cordelia, you're a great girl, surprisingly."

"Oh, no, where's this going," Cordelia asked him stricken.

"If you let me get there," he said tersely, and she shot up. "Okay, you're a great girl, Cor, but we can't date anymore. Love to keep you as a friend, but not anymore like that."

"Why?" Cordelia asked with trembling lips.

Xander sighed, looking down, and then told her, "Our insults. We go at it, and then we're kissing. I can't do that Cor. You know my father sold me to the mob, he shouted insults at me and my mother all the time as well. I don't want to go that road, and however unlikely it is I'll turn out like that, I just don't even want to tempt fate. If insults is what et us going, we have to break even the possibility off. You're the first that gets a definite answer; not the one you wanted, but . . ."

"Please, Xander, give me another, I'll bet we get to kissing and passion without the insults," Cordelia asked almost desperately.

"Sorry, Cordelia," he said, and then on impulse hugged her. "We're still friends if you want us to be. You need anything, I'm there for you."

He then broke the hug and left the classroom.

-----

Nervously Willow searched through the school, and quickly found him. "Oh, hey, Oz," she said, walking tall, wearing a pair of tight jeans and a green top.

"Hi," Oz said, brightening up and quickly joined the witch, taking out an animal-shaped potato chip from a bag. "Uhm, what I saw?" he asked softly.

"Ah, ya, well . . ." Willow let it hang there, and turned around to go in his direction.

Slowly they started walking, and he said, "Your secret is safe with me, I don't remember anything from when . . ." Softer he said, "when it was in control." Oz then smiled at her and said, "For the rest, everyone else seems to repress."

"Yeah, that's good," Willow said, most of her nervousness is gone and smiled at him.

"You have the most beautiful smile I've ever seen," Oz told her with a smile.

"Wha?" Willow exclaimed a little taken aback, then blushed. Oz started a funny story, but she suddenly interrupted. "Hold on," Willow told him, putting her hand on his chest. "Listen, Oz, you're great guy, but . . . uh . . . I have my eye on someone else, you know?"

"Oh, well, yeah, whoever that is, is lucky," Oz said, then brightened a bit, realizing something, "or stupid."

"No, it's complicated," Willow turned his hope down, "Sorry, Oz, but I'm going for him, and I'd love for us to be friends, but no dates, and kissing, well unless we're on a double date and the one dong the kissing with you is someone other than me." Willow faltered realizing her babble, and smiled at a still smiling, albeit sadly, Oz. Willow noticed Cordelia walk slowly toward her. "Oh! I know! If you wanted a date," Willow exclaimed with a smile, just a hint of sneaky in there, and grabbed Oz, pulling him along to Cordelia. "Cordelia, this is Oz, Oz, Cordelia. At first glance she seems like a bitch, but trust me, she isn't that bad once you get to know. Oz wants a date, have fun you two." Willow walked off, and gave Oz a sexy smile and a far too innocent goodbye wave.

"Uh, wha, huh?" Oz managed, for once in his life flabbergasted at the sudden change of events, then looked up at the cheerleader; wearing a lovely skirt and shirt.

For a moment the two were silent, in which time Cordelia suddenly got an idea; one last ditch effort - jealousy. "That's great," Cordelia said with a bright smile and pulled Oz along, turning him around.

"But- . . ." Oz attempted.

Cordelia barreled right over him, "You're a band member right? That's good, so interesting. I'm looking for a date as well. Say, Friday? Bronze? Will you pick me up at eight?"

"Uh . . ."

-----

Another day later

Kendra and Buffy with Xander next to her walked across Sunnydale High toward a taxi cab. She was wearing a green top now. "Now remember," Buffy told Kendra. "When you get there, you . . ."

"Use de ticket, not de cargo hold," Kendra answered with a smile.

Buffy nodded with a smile, as they reached the taxi cab. "Good, you need to stand up for yourself a bit you know. See about decent work hours, and vacations, spent here in good old Sunnydale of course."

Kendra smiled at Buffy, and said, "Why do you keep doing dat? Talk about the Slayer as eef eet's a job. But eet's not, eet's who you are."

"That in that handbook of yours?" Buffy asked her sister Slayer.

Kendra shook her head, and said, "No, learned eet from you." Buffy smiled. Kendra looked wistfully at Xander and said, "A Slayer with two boyfriends, one a vampire." Buffy looked down embarrassed as Kendra shook her head. "Xander, tank you for de extra training."

"No, problem, stay alive, Kendra," Xander told her with a smile.

Kendra nodded, and then turned to Buffy again, "You remember, look at beegger picture more, okay. And tanks again for de top."

Buffy made a half-hearted salute, and said, "Will do, and no problem. Goodbye, Kendra."

"Goodbye, Buffy," Kendra returned, hugged Buffy quickly, and then got into the cab.

Buffy and Xander watched the cab drive off and then turned around. "You know, Buffy, there's something about Kendra that keeps me going, 'eew'," Xander told her as they walked toward the school.

"Her? She isn't 'hot'?" Buffy asked, pretty certain Kendra was someone guys and Xander would consider very sexy.

"That's not it, it isn't so much her, as it is . . . I don't, I can't quite put my finger on it," Xander explained with a frown.

Buffy took him in, and then asked with a grin, "Hyena smell coming back and she's got bad-smelling makeup on?"

Xander turned to look at her, was about to say no, and then his eyes widened. "That's it!" Xander exclaimed softly.

"It is?" Buffy asked him with a confused pout.

Xander then swallowed, and asked Buffy, "She's not allowed to talk to boys, right?" Buffy nodded. "So, how come she's wearing makeup and lipstick that tells every guy, 'Come here, kiss me, and make my knees buckle with that tongue of yours?' Then that bare midriff, tight top."

"Uhm," Buffy frowned, shrugged, and answered, "Blending in better?"

Xander looked at her with a 'huh' expression and returned dryly, "So she rides a cargo hold?" Buffy's eyes quirked up, and then frowned down.

To Be Continued . . .


	21. part 21

----21---- 

"Ugh, wha?" Lexa muttered, bit by bit forcing her eyes open. What time was it? Why was her head pounding? She didn't get grand stupid drunk last night, right? Of course not, she didn't drink. Wait! Her head wasn't pounding, something else was _/being/_ pounded.

"HARRIS! OR HORNE!" a screaming muffled voice sounded. Lexa got up, looked around, and figured it came from the front door.

"What the . . .?" Lexa said, as he noticed the clock; 6:00.

"WHOEVER THE HELL IS IN THERE!" the man's voice continued.

"Yeah, yeah!" Lexa yelled angrily, getting up out of bed. She was wearing boxers and nothing else. Yawning she started walking, and then sped up as the complaining continued. Into the living area of her apartment, past the kitchen and finally to her front door. She unlocked the door, and opened it pissed off, "WHAT?" The man, and behind him a small throng of people, all her neighbors stood there, having varying degrees of annoyed and angry faces, as well as wearing varying degrees of night dress. The man stopped his hand before it would have slammed into Lexa's face, and then he stopped. An even more muffled sound of greater distance slowly filtered into Lexa's hearing. The neighbor looked down at her fantastic naked breasts and swallowed, his annoyance instantly forgotten. A few of the other man looked the same, while the women continued to be pissed, or got even worse - some even making tut tut expressions and sounds. Lexa looked down at herself and then snarled, "Oh, grow up, all of you! You woke me up at 6 o'clock in the friggin' morning, what the hell do you expect?"

The annoyance returned, and he hissed, "We _/-know-/_! Go tell your little lover that, and get him to shut up!"

"Lover? I don't have a lover," Lexa yelled back.

"OH NO?" the neighbor yelled at her, and pointed into the apartment, behind her, to the balcony and the beach. "I can't believe you it didn't wake _/you/_ up!"

Lexa turned around, and indeed the far away sound seemed to be coming from outside, albeit not through the balcony window. "I had double glass installed," Lexa muttered, and quickly walked over, while her neighbors contemplated getting the same thing.

Lexa unlocked and then opened her window, instantly assaulted by a voice calling out loud, "LEXA! LEXA! LEXA! COME OUT, MY LOVE!"

Lexa's eyes narrowed and walked to the edge of the balcony. The beach was some meter lower. A stone staircase lead from the front right of her balcony down to the sand. A small half-door that could be locked closed of the balcony. Lexa crossed the two an a half meters and then looked over the balcony down. "LEXA!" Deke Fisher yelled happily from the sand below now that she was finally out. He was in his football jacket, and had a radio standing on the sand. He turned it on, put the volume to max, and as romantic music started to play, he started to sing a self written song professing his undying love, and Lexa being so beautiful . . . you get the picture.

As Lexa stood there dumbfounded for a few fleeting moments she had to admit he had a good singing voice, then annoyance and anger took over. Her fist clenched, bringing it up next to her face while clenching her teeth and holding back a growl, producing the approximate sound of someone choking. When that didn't quit his singing, Lexa lost. She jumped over the railing, left hand leaning on it and came down. Deke quit his singing, and said happily, "Lexa, my love, I knew- . . ."

Lexa's foot slammed painfully in his face, and Deke was launched back several meters, unceremoniously being dumped in the sand. Lexa turned off the radio then crushed it. He walked over to the dazed Deke, yelling, "HAVE YOU LOST YOUR GOD DAMNED MIND!" The first punch punctuated the last word of the sentence, and Lexa grabbed Deke's collar with her left hand, starting to punch him repeatedly in the face with her right, "IT'S SIX O'CLOCK IN THE FUCKING MORNING!" A final powerful blow slammed Deke's upper body down on the sand.

"Ehhhhh," he managed as he razed his black and blue head and his left index finger a little. He moaned out, "Serenade - not - romantic?"

Lexa growled, and as she slammed her right foot in Deke's face she yelled, "AT TEN AT NIGHT MAYBE!" Deke was launched backward another meter. Lexa turned around and stalked back toward her apartment up the staircase, muttered expletives to herself.

Behind her Deke groaned and moaned in pain, the see water washed over him, rousing him to wakefulness and he quickly scrambled back up the beach. Then he noticed how dirty his jacket had become, and he cried, "My jacket!"

Back in her apartment Lexa went over to her front door and told her neighbors, "_/He/_ is _/not/_ my boyfriend. He does it again, don't wake me, call the cops!" Then she slammed the door in their faces, locked it, and headed back to her bedroom, muttering more profanities. Half way there, she moaned, "Ah, fuck, I'll never get back to sleep."

-----

Yawning Lexa walked onto the Sunnydale High grass, wearing tight jeans, and a sleeveless shirt, that wrapped tightly around her breasts. A small backpack finished her ensemble. Soon she reached Buffy and Willow, who was smiling brightly, having her hair in a ponytail, wearing a short red skirt and white top that left her midriff open. She was holding a few books in front of her. Buffy comparatively was in a black skirt of her own, and a purple blouse that hugged her form without become tight everywhere, not a book in sight.

"Nightmares?" Buffy asked the girl.

Lexa shook her head, and explained, "Deke Fisher thought it was romantic to serenade a girl at six in the morning."

"You didn't kill him, did you?" Willow asked a little stricken as the three of them slowly turned toward the entrance and started walking toward him.

"I came close," Lexa said sourly, still pissed remembering the event.

Buffy nodded encouragingly, and said, "Good for you, your self control is improving."

Lexa gave Buffy a glare, who smiled innocently. Lexa asked, "So what's new with my two favorite babes in the world?"

"That Slayer emblem," Willow answered softly. Buffy looked at Willow with wide eyes. "I'm thinking of drawing it out, and seeing how much it costs to have made in print. If I plant it right here on my chest, it will not only look good, but I can also scare off vampires, and hypnotize them before I dust them with my breast. That'd be so cool."

Buffy groaned out in horror. "I can't believe you, Will. That's so tacky, besides, I doubt you need an emblem to hypnotize vampires with your chest."

Willow sputtered out something that attempted to be an answer. Luckily for her she was saved by an Amazon. "Nihau!" came an enthusiastic voice, and saw a far too happy Lotion bouncing toward them. Her flowery, tight, Asian dress/tunic fluttered about. It didn't have any sides, just wide, rounded slits, only two stylish flaps at the front and the back. If she walked normally it would be almost invisible that the dress had no sides. She jumped quite high and came down close to the group, as she said, "I'm so happy I'm not a bunny anymore. I'm back completely!" As she sailed down the dress fluttered up, baring her naked legs, and a lovely, lacy, black g-string. Lexa's eyes were glued to the g-string, as were Willow's although she was struggling not to and some annoyance at herself and embarrassment filtered across her face. Lexa landed and made a pirouette, making the flaps flutter about more, and said, "I hated being a bunny."

"Oh, it wasn't so bad," Lexa muttered barely audible.

"That's so cheating," Buffy commented pointed just a bit to the dress at Lotion's crotch area.

As Lexa and Willow shook themselves out of it, Lotion commented, "All's fair in love and war."

"Let's just get to class," Willow said, as they reached the entrance. "Which kinda means, you have to disappear," Willow said to Lexa, a little regret, which soon disappeared realizing who would be in her place.

Lexa nodded, and walked off toward the bathrooms for some privacy. The three girls turned to the left, and Lotion spoke, "Ah, life as a human being. To love an amazing- . . ."

"We get it already!" Buffy told her in exasperation, wishing she was still an unassuming Bunny.

A little while later they arrived at their classroom, and Xander caught up to them about the same time, slowing down. "Hey," Buffy said, with a smile, giving Lotion just a quick look with a movement of her eyes. She stepped forward, pushed her body, and especially her chest into Xander, pulled his head down, and gave him a deep passionate kiss, rubbing her body up against him. Then she broke the kiss, and took a step back. Xander stood there with a smile.

"And she says I'm cheating," Lotion muttered to Willow, indicating Buffy. The witch shrugged sadly.

-----

Buffy and Xander were sparring in the library. Close by, Lotion and Cordelia were doing the same thing, the first giving pointers to the latter. Jenny and Willow were in a meditation session sitting on the main table. As Xander parried a punch and kick combination from Buffy, Giles standing behind the counter, said, "I must say, Xander, that your observation about Kendra is quite disturbing on its own. However, I have not seen any signs in Kendra's behavior to indicate she might be suffering from sexual abuse."

Landing a kick on Buffy's chest, he pointed out, "Except barely manage to say word in front of me."

Giles nodded, but continued, "True, however that is explainable by what she was taught. Don't you think that if she were truly abused by her watcher, she'd have most trouble with me, being a watcher myself? However, not only did she not show any sign with me, we enjoyed each other's company greatly. It might even be called having fun."

"Yeah, Xander," Cordelia spoke, before having her legs being swiped from under her by Lotion, and groaning as she hit the floor.

"Don't get distracted during a fight," Lotion lectured with a grin.

Cordelia glared at Lotion, getting up quickly, and finishing, "I didn't see anything about her that told me she wasn't another happy, gung-ho, too aggressive Slayer."

"I have to agree with her, Xander," Jenny entered the conversation from her position. "I think you going down to Equador is unnecessary and a waste of time. Kendra is not being abused."

"Quite," Giles added once again, "especially since sexual abuse of the Slayer assigned to you, is the most frowned upon thing within the council. A watcher has great leeway with the Slayer, but that is one thing you cannot do. I can tell you, that no watcher will do that."

Xander parried a punch from Buffy, and then grabbed her followup holding it tightly. He muttered out, "I can't tell you how often I wished someone wouldn't have said that, and come to check out my home life."

Everyone was immediately silent. A tear flowed from Willow's face; having known about Xander's home life, but having been too young to know what to do about it. The strength in Buffy's arm left her, and she looked at Xander. Cordelia and Lotion looked at him sadly, Giles looked apologetic. Aafter an uncomfortable moment, Xander knocked Buffy to the ground.

"I realize that, Xander," Giles started gravely, his voice pained and even guilt, "but I promise you, that that is not the case this time. Kendra is well taken care of, and is in a healthy environment. That is as healthy as a Slayer can get it; barring perhaps Buffy's."

"You promise?" Xander asked.

"I promise, Kendra is safe," Giles told him evenly.

Xander hesitated for a moment, and then decided that the grownup that the most experience with the watchers and the council was right, and let it go.

Willow though, had another pressing matter weighing heavily on her mind, and she said, "Giles, about this Drusilla rising ritual?"

"Yes?" Giles asked.

"Well, correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't they basically get all the answers, because Buffy let one vamp get away?" Willow asked with an uncertain expression.

"Hey!" Buffy exclaimed with some betrayal.

"Well, actually, yes," Giles answered.

"Hey!" Buffy added louder, not liking this.

"Why? Did you have something in mind?" Giles asked her.

Willow scratched herself behind the ears, smiled and said, "Well, I was thinking; Lotion and Xander do their own patrols and scheduling, and, uh . . ."

"Yes?" Lotion prompted.

Willow swallowed as she saw Buffy's and Lotion's angry glare pointed at her, and then babbled onward, "Also they want the most time off of course, but shouldn't we have you make up the schedule, and make sure no one patrols alone? For you see, if Buffy weren't alone, than the vampire couldn't have gotten away, and . . ."

"I think we get the picture, Willow," Giles spoke thoughtfully, taking off his glasses to clear them, "And I must say, I rather like you're idea; if you're not alone, then I think it's even possible for you and Cordelia to patrol - should you want to of course."

The others looked at each other, and realized Willow was right. "Brainiac Willow, you rule," Xander told her with a smile, and Willow blushed, but grinned widely.

"That is definitely a good idea," Lotion added in with a smile, "was starting to find patrolling lonely; despite all the fun of dusting vampires."

"Well, count me in," Cordelia said with a grin, "I just found out, I'm still a master with swords; I'm looking forward to chopping some more heads."

"I've got dips on Xander as a patrol partner!" Buffy exclaimed with a big grin.

"Buffy," Giles admonished her sternly, "I do believe the point of me making the schedules, would be that _/I/_ also make the pairings for that night."

Buffy pouted, but Giles didn't budge, which made Buffy decide to switch the depressing subject, "So? Are we going bronzing tonight? Girls' night out?"

"I can't," Lotion said somewhat sadly, restarting the sparring with Cordelia, "my mother has me doing some chores and some special training with her."

"Well, I'm there," Willow said happily.

Cordelia barely deflected a blow, and said, "I might be in the Bronze, but not with you; I've got a date."

"Really?" Xander asked surprised, twisting away from Buffy's fist. It was good, and he was happy for sure that Cordelia moved on. "Well, I'll definitely be coming, I can use a good breezer."

-----

Willow had just taken a shower, preparing for the Bronze. She was naked apart from toweling off, and came by her fish tank. She grabbed a pot with fish food, and tossed some in. She smiled as she watched her fish swim up to get something. She walked over to her bed - more like hopping on one foot, then changing to the other as she dried her feet. Now fully dry, she removed the plastic hair covering, and shook her long hair free.

Across the bed was a mirror and she took in her flowing hair as it bounced about her head a bit. Before Xander had come back a girl, she'd never had the guts to have the hair dresser work on her hair like this. She took herself in. Her breasts were pretty nice, good size too, she decided, not big, but certainly not small, and then she took in her curves. She modeled back and forth a bit, pushing out her hips, then smiled. She about to go get a pair of panties and put them on, when she stopped. She turned back, and looked in the mirror. She couldn't really, right? But why not? She bit her lower lip, trying to decide, her head almost spinning. It would be so naughty, so . . . well, Willow had masturbated before of course, but to herself? And why not? Don't they always say on Oprah, if you want to get love, you most love yourself first and send out that love? She might as well make it more physical; she was bi after all.

She climbed on her bed, then paused. She quickly got off and went to her door, making sure it was locked. Then she got back, and once more crawled onto the bed, on her knees. She seductively crawled forward, arching her back, and looking herself in the mirror eyes. She licked her upper lips, and then giggled. Growing serious again, she took in her downward hanging breasts - who didn't really 'hang' all that much. "You're hot," she told herself, and giggled again. She blew herself a kiss, and licked her lips, giving herself seductive looks. Her body tingled clearly now, her nipples tightening.

Was she wet already? Only one way to find out, Willow decided. She let sucked on her right index and middle fingers, and then let them slowly sink along her body. She paused at her breasts, fondling them, sending shivers down her body. Then she quickly moved her hand further along her body, making sure to touch and fondle it all. Then she reached her short pubic hair, and hesitated a moment. Then she went further, exploring a bit; but even blind she could find her pleasure knob pretty quickly. "Ooh, mmh," she whimpered as she gave her clitoris a few expert rubs. But that hadn't been the goal, hadn't it. She moved forward, and gently dipped her middle finger between her folds. "Definitely wet," she told herself hotly as her finger sank smoothly into her moist depth. She added another, and moaned at the pleasurable intrusion. She pulled them back out again, the plunged them back. Breathing heavier he fingers went in and out, in and out. "You're hot, Willow," she whimpered to herself between moans. "So sexy, yeah. Boys and girls want you, all you have to do is spread your legs," she told herself, then shuddered at the image, while her fingers stimulated her moist depths. After a few more seconds of heavy breathing and pleasuring herself, Willow decided this wasn't the way to do it.

No, indeed, this was the position to take with another present, but she was alone, and there was barely anything to see of herself. She couldn't make love to herself like this. She removed her slick fingers and wiped them off on her breasts, eliciting an aroused groan from herself. She quickly turned her ass forward, shifted her legs off the bed, placing her feet close together on the ground. She took herself in now, and smiled naughtily - the utter her returned the gesture, turning her on. "I'm so naughty," she whispered to herself, her head buzzing with forbidden arousal. Resolutely, but steadily with a teasing pace, she opened her legs, moaning as she could see herself in full glory. "Oh, god," she muttered, and quickly, almost of their own accord, her right fingers made the journey back down to her vagina.

Her two fingers once again slipped in her tight depths, which gripped her fingers now. "Oh, I want it," she told herself hotly, and starting moving her fingers in and out. Slowly at first, but in no time at all they found a breakneck speed, plunging in an out at dizzying speeds, and bringing forth even greater pleasures. Her left hand started squeezing her tits, while she kept her eyes on herself in the mirror, roaming up and down, lingering at interesting parts. She made kissing motions to herself as her pleasure rose rapidly. Her hips started bucking on her fingers of their own accord, her inner muscles grasping the pleasure-bringing digits with greater ferocity.

"Oh, my god, I'm going to come," Willow told herself, speeding her hand motions up just a bit. Her hips bucked harder, as she slowly arched her back. The sound of her breathing was quick and heavy, gasp in, gasp out, gasp in, gasp out, rapid, almost like a dog. It was happening; the tingling started in her feet, drew up her legs, and then slammed in her vagina and clit, who took it over and blasted it outward in pure bliss. "Ahmng!" Willow gave one powerful moan in her release, then clenched her lips and teeth shut, not wanting to alert her mother. Her body jerked, her hips shuddered and rippled into her fingers, and her inner muscles seemed to want to suck them inside. Her body trembled uncontrollably, the muscles in her stomach clenching and unclenching, before it locked in position, her back arched fully. Amazing pulses of pleasure flowed through her body, as she sat there, riding them out, muscles powerfully, but only slightly rippling as they sent the bliss up into her mind.

Her orgasm broke, and she let her mouth go, letting out a low moan and then she collapsed backward onto the bed. Her right fingers were still in her pussy, and her left quickly joined them. Only slowly she came down from her high, gently moaning out, still feeling aroused, staying high up there. When she found herself growing tender she gently removed her hands, and rested them on her stomach. She rested a bit, before sitting bolt upright. "Shit, I got to hurry," she said, reaching for the drawer with her panties.

-----

Xander looked himself over in the mirror. He was naked, and he took in his muscles, the shape of his shoulders. He flexed a few of them, testing himself with his awakening bisexual side. Part of it was still a bit scary; he was a pretty heterosexual guy, so he was a heterosexual girl, and the two tastes were blending to make him (and her) fully bisexual - or at least that's what he had gathered from Willow's explanation back then - he hadn't payed that much attention, seeing as he had mostly been panicking inside at the time. Over time he had gotten mostly used to the idea however; having decided that the drawback of starting to think sexually about guys, just couldn't possibly way up against the benefits . . . not to mention the fact that if he dismissed the concept outright, fought it tooth and nail, he'd basically be saying to his best friend in over a decade, whose own bisexuality was arising, 'you're dirty and bad.' That was something Xander would never be able to get across his heart, so he decided to go with it.

He still remembered the relief when he found out he wasn't gushing over every 'hot guy' he loathed with a passion, like all the heterosexual girls in school. Once that obstacle was out of the way; there was nothing stopping him from grasping the bull by the horn so to speak. "Xander Harris, you're hot," he told himself with a grin, then cocked his head.

He reached over to a bottle with water, and said, "Of course, however hot you are as a guy . . ." He splashed a little water in his face, dried it off with a prepared towel, and then as she ran her hand through her hair, she told herself, "you're out of this world as a girl."

Lexa took herself in, and grinned, putting the towel aside. "Oh, yeah, definitely worth it, I'll always have a girl with me," she smiled at herself, checking out her voluptuous hips, her C-cup breasts, and her soft but strong legs. The muscles she had, elevated from just another hot girl, to smoking - the leg-muscles promising a sweet captivity, wrapped around someone's waist. Lexa took in her shaven pussy-mound, smirking at herself, and letting her fingers glide over her lips. "Uh, uh!" she told herself suddenly, forcing her hand away. "No time, and you're not turning into one of those girls who always late . . . waait a minute, so that's why they're always late, no self control!" She chuckled, and wiggled her eyebrows at herself once, finishing, "Can't say I blame 'em." She laughed, and got out her lacy black g-string, slowly and seductively pulling them up along her legs. Finally they fit snugly around her crotch. "Damn, quit looking at yourself, before you soil the panties," Lexa admonished herself, and sped up the changing process.

-----

Buffy finished putting on her lipstick as the doorbell rang downstairs. "All girls' night out," she told herself, shaking her head. It had been several months since Xander returned gender challenged, but there were still times when the concept amazed her. He really was one of the girls now - and at the same time, the complete opposite. She shook her head at the irony; becoming a girl in order to become a boyfriend. She quickly went down the stairs, and opened the door, behind which Willow and Xander were waiting.

"Wow, smoking," Lexa said, taking in Buffy's black, tight, shiny leather pants, and purple top.

"Uhuh," Willow said, eyes wide. Dang, it wasn't fair to have so many hot girls around.

"Thanks, guys, you're yummy too," Buffy commented on their short skirts and high heels; the tops obscured by their coats though, "At least, I'd be able to claim if I weren't straight."

"Hey, girls," a voice said, and Joyce summers in pair of tight jeans and low cut top arrived from the living room, "Have fun tonight."

-Definitely not fair,- Willow thought taking in Buffy's mother, then quickly shook the notion from her mind.

"We will, Mrs. S," Lexa sounded from next to Willow, smiling, while Buffy grabbed her coat.

"We're going, see ya mom!" Buffy called back, and quickly went out the door, not wanting to be around when her mom remembered to set a curfew.

As Willow turned around and Buffy's behest, she wondered for a quick moment if Xander found . . . couldn't be. Their two gazes locked for a moment, -OH, MY GOD!-

The look hadn't lasted a second, and the had turned almost completely smoothly, but Buffy's Slayer senses picked up on it. "What was that look you two just gave each other?" she asked suspiciously.

"What look?" Xander answered innocently.

"No look here, uh, uh, no sirree, Bob," Willow quickly added. Buffy looked suspiciously at them for a few moments, and then they went on their way.

-----

The three of them were sitting at a table in the Bronze, dark except for the flashing lights off the stage, and the low mood lighting. They had drinks in front of them, and took the occasional sip as they talked about his and that.

"This is nice," Buffy said with a smile.

"Yep, definitely with the nice," Lexa added with a smile.

Willow nodded saying, "Yep, no Deo messing with my magic, no assassins, no Spike and Drusilla - nice quiet times."

"Yep, quiet is good; just me, my two best friends, and talk and dance . . ." Buffy said as she looked around the bronze, seeing people sitting, standing, talking, and a good number dancing. "I'm bored."

"Me too," Lexa offered, as Willow looked at her two friends - she was far from bored. Lexa suddenly sat up, and then said, "Okay, a little less bored." Buffy and Willow looked where she was looking, and there was Cordelia, in plain view of the three of them, passionately kissing Oz.

"Wow, she moves fast," Buffy commented, and Willow nodded with a grin.

"You can say that again," Lexa said somewhat bitterly.

Willow looked over at her, and said, "I thought you broke up with her."

"I did!" Lexa defended herself, and fumed, "it isn't like I'm jealous or anything, but I'd expected to have given a bit more of an impression than . . . what? Two days before she's snogging the next guy."

"I kinda coupled them," Willow said with a cheeky grinned. Buffy and Xander looked questioningly at her. Willow grinned, and said, "He was about to ask me out, I nipped that in the bud with me being your, and all. Then I introduced them; he's so nice and quiet, and she's one giant egotistical blabber mouth; they complement each other perfectly." Willow finished her rather comfortable babble, grinning widely at her two incredulous friends. When she noticed their expressions, Willow added conspiratorially to Buffy, "If it succeeds, it's one less rival."

Buffy's eyebrows widened, then grinned, and told her, "Great going, Will."

"I am sitting right here, you know," Lexa pointed out to his two friends, who just turned to look at him as if they had no idea they did anything wrong.

The band lowered its song, and the singer spoke into the microphone, "It's ten o'clock right now, and someone asked to sing something for a certain someone."

Lexa's eyes widened, and kept her gaze locked on Buffy and Willow. She was with her back to the stage, and so she asked the other two, "Please, say it isn't so."

"What isn't?" Buffy asked Lexa.

"Hello, all, you all know who I am," the familiar voice came through the speakers. Lexa's eyes twitched and more so when he saw Buffy and Willow look surprised at the stage. "I'm Deke Fisher, Red-Streak Quarterback of Sunnydale High." Lexa's right hand balled into a fist, as she bared her teeth. Deke continued, "I'm here to serenade my beloved Lexa, may our love triumph." The band started playing a gently song, and then Deke started to sing.

_Oh, Lexa, beautiful Lexa,_

_Your eyes as mysterious as the stars,_

_Oh, Lexa, my sexy Lexa,_

_With the most amazing legs . . ._

"I'm gonna kill him," Lexa hissed and twisted around on the seat. Instantly Buffy and Willow surged forward, grabbing her by the shoulders and holding her down. Lexa struggled, grunting, "Let me go kill him, damn it."

"Lexa," Buffy admonished needing nearly all her strength to keep Lexa down. "Unlike waking you up at six o'clock in the morning, this is not a hittable offence."

"Certainly not a killable one," Willow added as Lexa still struggled.

_Oh, amazing Lexa, with your bright smile,_

_You light up the whole Bronze,_

_Indeed Lexa, I love you,_

_You are so free, so lovely,_

"Can't I hit him just a little?" Lexa whimpered slowly stopping her struggling.

"No, sorry, Lexa," Willow told her with resolve.

Lexa stopped, and then surged forward, "Then let me go tell him what I think at least!"

"Only if you promise," Buffy demanded.

Lexa said, "I promise I won't hit him."

Buffy pushed her head around, looking in her friend's eyes. Lexa sighed, "Or kick him, or hurt him in any other way, apart from using words." Buffy nodded to Willow and the two let Lexa go.

_When your quick wit is unleashed,_

_Everyone can see your beauty,_

_And no one will not laugh,_

_Apart from the victim,_

_Oh, Lexa, I love you- kzzzgt_

Lexa still standing on the dance floor, but right at the stage, had yanked the microphone stand away from Deke. "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?" Lexa screamed at him, stopping the entire floor and the band.

"Serenading you, my love, showing my love for all- . . ." Deke started.

"QUIT IT!" Lexa yelled at him with anger. "Don't you get it yet that I'm not interested in you? I'm not in love with you, I'm not even attracted to you. To me you're just a stumper who gets lucky running around with a stupid ball!"

"I can change your mind, just let me have this dance," Deke tried anyway, looking hopeful in a happy sort of way, extending his hand down at the girl.

Lexa started to growl, closing her eyes, softly whispering to herself, "I promised I wouldn't hurt him, I promised I wouldn't hurt . . . oh, what the hell." She readied her fist, then caught someone in the corner of her eye. A smile crept up her face, and looked up at Deke, "Watch this, dick face." She turned to her right, and walked straight at the geek guy standing near a pillar.

"Hey, handsome," Lexa started with a seductive face, running her right hand gently through his hair until it reached the back. "I remember you, you helped me, do you remember me?" she asked riding her body up Jonathan's body.

Jonathan gulped, hoping in god's name that she didn't notice his rising erection at the touch and proximity of her scantily clad body. He managed to nod, and mutter, "Y-yes."

"Oh, don't worry, handsome," Lexa purred placing a kiss on his forehead, "by the time I'm halfway done, you won't be erect anymore, unless you have fantastic control." Jonathan's eyes widened in utter shock, and whimpered before Lexa's lips pressed against his, her tongue pushing inside a moment later, starting a passionate kiss. She pulled him backward toward the dance floor than broke the kiss, her left hand snaking around his back to his ass, and she added, "Or perhaps a little sooner." Lexa then frowned and turned to the stunned band, "Hey, music, I'm trying to dance here."

The lead singer snapped out of it, and said, "Yes, ma'am." He took a step forward and took the microphone from the silent, jaw-dropped, pained Deke. He slapped the quarterback on his shoulders and said, "It was valiant try, man, it wasn't meant to be. Sorry." He then gently pushed him to the right, toward the end of the stage, and Deke very slowly, like a man going to his execution, walked onward. Behind him the band started a much more vibrant and sexy sound, and the singer started singing.

-----

Buffy and Willow watched as Lexa started to perform an amazing sexy dance, purely designed to titillate her dance partner . . . and the rest of the bronze.

"Mmh, looks like fun," Willow said with a grin, and nudged Buffy. "Come on."

Buffy swallowed, and said, "Dance with you, or get a partner?"

Willow grinned and looked over to a defeated guy next to the podium, and said, "I was thinking I was always too insecure to dance with a quarterback."

Buffy blinked, and several Bronze-damaging scenarios filled her mind as she pictured possible reactions from Lexa. "_/You/_ wouldn't!" Buffy exclaimed to her redheaded friend.

Willow flashed her a downright evil grin, and the witch walked off. Buffy shuddered, look around, and decided she wasn't going to sit this one out again. She got off the stool, and looked around, seeing if she could find an available guy, or otherwise dance solo. She smiled as she found a nice-looking, blonde guy talking to his buddies.

Willow reached Deke, and gently laid her arms around his neck. "Hello," Willow said, smiling up at him. She wondered what effect this would have on Xander, it could range from the good to the bad she knew, but there was no turning back now.

Deke's eyes fluttered, life returning to him. "Huh?'

"I'm Willow, wanna dance?" Willow asked, and didn't give Deke time to answer. She pulled him up on the dance floor and rubbed her body against his, swaying to the music.

Deke looked down, directly into Willow's cleavage, and saw her naked legs from under her short skirt. "Oh, boy," he muttered, as Willow's ass gently undulated, pushing her crotch against his upper legs.

"That's right, Deke, just focus on me, I'm hot, aren't I?" Willow asked him, her heart fluttering nervously waiting for the answer, hating herself that she still hadn't quite lost her insecure days fully.

"Oh, yeah, sizzling," Deke muttered without thought, and Willow's heart smelled with pride.

Lexa gently moved to the beat of the musing, shaking everything she had to shake, trying to get Jonathan to steer her a bit, lead so to speak. It seemed to work here in there, but quickly forgot about it, as she felt Jonathan's and every other guys eyes on her body . . . well except a good number.

Lexa opened her eyes to take a good look, and suddenly her eyes widened as she saw a redhead ride up against Deke, and he seemed to enjoy it. Taking over leading for a bit, she went closer to Deke and bit at the jock, "Oh, how grand your claims of love are." Deke blanched, and blushed, trying to stammer an explanation of 'just dancing' and 'no love', but Lexa continued onward, "And here you are, riding up to the first, trashy redh- . . ." Lexa's voice caught as she took a closer look. The redhead turned around, exposing her front and continued riding her body, now backward, against Deke, her eyes closed and obviously enjoying herself. "Willow?" Lexa exclaimed in shock, looking from Deke's face to Willow's and back. "How? Wha? How could you?"

Willow opened her eyes, and told her best friend, "Hey, I have to be able to tell my grandchildren the true story, of how despite being a geek, and could wrap everyone around my finger, including the star quarterback." Willow knew it was a bullshit reason, and then Lexa wouldn't believe it for a moment, but that was the point.

"Low, Willow," Lexa told her with narrowed eyes. "You've really sunk low."

Willow shrugged, and then grinned she called out over the music, "And about to go lower." She brought her left arm and sensually wrapped it around Deke's upper left leg, stimulating him.

"If you think that's low . . ." Willow and Lexa looked over, coming across Buffy dancing with a blond guy, pushing her leather clad crotch into his. Buffy looked back at them, and grinned, "Watch this." Then wrapped her right hand around his ass, and looked up at him seductively, "What's your name?"

"Sean," the guy answered with a happy smile.

"Nice name," she told him, blinking her eyelids sexily at him.

Lexa looked annoyed for a moment, and then, pointed at the band, making an upward gesture with he index finger, and said, "Hey, turn it up a little."

The lead singer grinned, stopped his singing, and loving a good show, told his band mates, "Guys, you heard the lady." The beat went up, and turned into a more sweaty, sexual-energetic song.

Lexa grinned, and then pushed Jonathan's face in between her breasts, as she sped up her movements to the beat. She wiggled her eyebrows superiorly to her friends, as Jonathan muttered with a barely-seen, _/huge/_ smile, "I've died and gone to heaven."

Off to the side, Cordelia stood watching the show of the three girls one upping each other. Oz stood next to her, looking with an unreadable smile. "Well, I'll be damned," Cordelia muttered with a huff. "Those, those . . . that . . . he . . . here I am, working my butt off, and he just goes onto the dance floor and . . . and . . ." She gestured at the lewd scene.

"He?" Oz questioned.

Cordelia turned to face him, took him in for a moment, and then said, "Let's dance." She grabbed Oz by the arm, and pulled him along.

"I don't really dance," Oz muttered as she stumbled behind Cordelia.

"You don't have to," Cordelia said with a grin, "just stand there, and I'll use you like a strip club's silver pole to blow everyone off the dance floor." Oz's eyebrows actually rose at that statement.

-----

Later

Cordelia sat in the passenger seat of Oz's van as he slowly drove her home. "I can't believe it," Cordelia spoke angrily. "I kissed you right in front of his face, and he goes off to make Jonathan's life bliss. Then I join in, and barely a flicker, now he's off with his dork friends."

"Exactly who is this 'he', again?" Oz asked carefully.

"Xander, Xander Harris!" Cordelia hissed out his name.

Oz looked her in the eyes, and looked deeper. Cordelia jerked back. "I didn't see him."

"He was there, trust me," Cordelia said, tightening the arms folded across her ample chest.

"So what's so special about Xander Harris that you tried to make him jealous by kissing me? Good kiss, by the way," Oz asked dryly.

Cordelia sighed, and lifted one finger, "He's good looking . . ." Then she raised the next finger, thus counting onward every point, "He's got an amazing body, muscles, mmh, he's confident, he stands up to evil, he had the guts to stand up to me, saved my life a few times . . ."

"Ah, a veritable white knight," Oz said, understanding, Cordelia looked over to him, "although isn't the bad boy these days?"

"Do I look like I care?" Cordelia asked him, and he looked over, taking in her eyes again. There was no way he couldn't see them brimming with pain. Xander breaking up with him - and her failure to sway him back, hurt her more than she was willing to admit, he was sure. But why? Hmm . . .

"Saved you from what, though?" Oz asked a gently.

"That's . . . not important," Cordelia answered.

"From some of those monsters?" Oz asked, and Cordelia looked surprised at him. "I do not succumb to panic, I did see them at the school when they attacked. Rather odd everyone else seems to have chosen to not remember them."

"Yeah, yeah, from some of the monsters, the vampires, the whole forces of evil thing," Cordelia said, sinking down, then leant back.

He noticed Cordelia leaning back, looking dreamily, yet sadly up at the roof of his van. "'s There more?" he asked smoothly.

"Multiple orgasms, he can give multiple orgasms with just his fingers," Cordelia answered, and then suddenly blanched as she realized she'd said that out loud.

To her surprise, Oz casually remarked, "I can do that too; although perhaps not quite with just my fingers yet, then again, I _/am/_ a guitar player. There was this groupie once - I am not proud of some of my past decisions - who most definitely had multiple orgasms. Of course, she came pretty easy, but I'll bet if I have the time to explore a girl's body and reactions . . ."

Cordelia looked shocked at him. "That isn't a lie?" she blurted out.

"No," Oz grunted.

"Oh, uhm," Cordelia muttered, not knowing what to do.

Oz once saw the sad look, and it intrigued, intrigued him definitely. There was more here than just a shallow cheerleader. "Listen," Oz said, mustering a smile, "I'm willing to overlook the whole use-me-to-get-another-guy-jealous thing, provided you go out with me again, and this time for real? Give me a fair chance?"

"You would?" Cordelia asked a little surprised, even more so when she felt some of spirits rise.

"There's this new movie out, that they say is good, I'm reserving judgement though," he offered, as he pulled up to the Chase mansion. "Friday, eight o'clock?"

Cordelia looked at him for a moment, and then told him, "Okay." She smiled weakly, and then gestured to the house. "Uh, here, yeah," she muttered nervously, and steadily opened the door, getting out. She hesitated for a moment, and then said, "Thanks."

"No problem, Friday, don't forget," Oz told her.

"I won't," she said and closed the door. Then Oz' van drove off. "'I won't?'" she asked herself, going over her muttering. "God, Chase, what's wrong with you? You sounded like a loser back there," Cordelia admonished, then steeled herself before opening the small door in the larger gate with her key.

-----

"I can't believe I did that. I can't believe it was so much fun!" Buffy said, as she walked on Lexa's right toward her home. Lexa, and Willow on the other side of her, nodded with a smile.

"Yep, letting go and enjoying the music and the dance is a lot of fun, especially if you can get everyone else to watch you put them to shame," Lexa grinned with a twinkle in her eyes, and Willow nodded enthusiastically.

"And did you guys see ice-queen Cordelia?" Buffy asked them, still surprised at superior cheerleader.

"Yep, she was smoking," Willow said with a grin. She blanched and turned to look at her friends, "I didn't just think and say that about Cordelia, did I?"

"Sorry, Will, you've joined the club," Lexa told her, and Willow whimpered turning her head back. "Or left it, as the case may be."

"Huh?" Buffy wondered.

"I was the president of the 'I hate Cordelia'-club a few years back," Willow explained mortified.

Buffy didn't let Willow's funk spoil her excitement, and said, "I still can't get over how she danced their right with us, showing it all, letting it all go. I can tell you, when I was Queen Bitch of Hemery High, I _/never/_ would have done that."

"Too superior to lower yourself?" Lexa asked with a grin.

"Exactly," Buffy said with a perpetual smile. They split up between Willow and Lexa for a moment, for them to maneuver around a streetlight, and Buffy continued, "I was high queen, only low trash let themselves go like that. Sure we danced, and we'd even be sexy, especially to our dates; but completely losing yourself in the music, hardly noticing anything around you . . ."

"Good thing you lowered yourself down to the trash, right, Buff?" Lexa said with a grin.

"Exa- hey!" Buffy replied, making Lexa and Willow giggle. "That was low," Buffy added, before joining in the giggling.

They reached the driveway to Buffy's house, and so they walked up it. Buffy reached for her keys, and moved to put in the lock, wondering why the lights were out. The door just opened; apparently somebody hadn't properly closed it; or broke it open. Fear suddenly gripped her heart. She gave her companions a look, who gave a determined nod. Stealthily they entered the house, Buffy up front, peering left and right. There was a sound, a yelp, and glass breaking, and for a tiny, single instant Buffy froze, then she the two ran forward, passed the stairs, and opened the door to the kitchen, finding . . .

Mrs. Summers making out with a man. Their jaws dropped, as Joyce laughed a bit, then froze as she noticed Buffy and her friends. The man froze too, and turned around. "Oh, hi, Buffy, you're home early," Joyce said a little weakly. "I pushed over a glass, uh . . ."

"Hi," the man wearing an apron and holding a spoon said.

"Oh, uh, Buffy, this is Ted," Joyce said, as Buffy closed her mouth, and looked with some distrust at the man. What was it about him. Willow just looked with wide eyes, while Lexa took him calmly.

"Hi," Buffy muttered.

"Ted, this is Buffy and her friends Willow and . . . Lexa," Joyce said, having to remember Xander's female name for a moment.

Ted took a step forward and extended his hand toward Buffy, and she gingerly took it. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Buffy, your mother has told me a lot about you."

"Not the other way around," Buffy muttered, getting creepy crawly feelings - this guy was just too nice, she could hear it in his tone of voice even now.

Ted laughed nervously - perfectly, _/far/_ too perfectly - and said, "We will rectify the inequality in no time I'm sure; I'd love to talk with you."

Ted moved on to Willow and shook the surprised witch's hand, "Hello, Willow, I think Buffy has a great taste in friends."

"Oh, yeah, hi," she said with a blush at Ted's charming nature.

Ted turned to Buffy's right, where Lexa had taken a step forward. Ted held out a hand, but Lexa kept her arms folded across her chest. Buffy looked a little surprised at that, and so did Joyce. After a moment, Ted decided to talk without the hand shake, saying, "Well, Lexa, I hope we can get to no each other, but this isn't very polite behavior, now is it?"

Everyone looked at the Mexican standoff, which was about to end. Lexa looked down, taking in the still offered hand, then looked up, and said slowly, "No chi."

"What?" Ted said as the others just looked surprised.

With rapid speed, Lexa's hands shot out, her left grabbed Ted's shoulder, and a moment later her right smashed into Ted's chest. The other three gasped, and then looked in more surprise when electrical sparks jumped from the wound and Ted's head. "Sex bots," Lexa hissed out, angrily.

Ted stood shuddering, "This . . . this . . . is . . . is . . . un- . . . un- . . ."

"God damn, perverted sex bots," Lexa cursed, and tore out a mass of wiring from the robot, making it glitch even more. With an uppercut, Lexa rammed through Ted's right shoulder and tore off its arm. "First they hit on innocent boys, and now they go after lovely, pure, single mothers to corrupt!" Lexa smashed the arm across Ted's face, and then back again, making the robot stagger back and desperately try to maintain balance while it continued glitching. "What's this world coming to? Sex bots here, sex bots there, and if it isn't sex bots, it's pedophile, cowardly vampires!" Lexa slammed the arm one last time across the robots face, and it dropped over, slamming against the cupboards in the back, sitting up, glitching.

"Pedophile vampires?" Joyce asked her daughter concerned as Lexa stalked over to Ted.

Buffy smiled innocently and said, "Some nasty bunch I had to dust last week."

Lexa reached Ted, and growled out, "I mean, am I the only normal, average day guy left on this planet? Or is it just the hellmouth?" When one final roundhouse kick she decapitated Ted and his half-singed head dropped literally bonelessly to the ground, where it stayed. Lexa breathed heavily with her anger and annoyance and took in the other three women. "At least this one bothered to wear clothes," Lexa finished with a grunt.

Willow pointed at Lexa and said, sweetly smiling, "You're not exactly a normal guy either, Xan. In fact, right now, you're not a man at all."

Lexa's eyes twitched, and she looked down at her own breasts. A growl sounded from the back of her throat. She dipped her hands in a pain of heating water and splashed it on her face; and so Xander Harris stood their in a short skirt. Buffy barely kept back a grin - Xander had been right, guy clothes could look got on a girl, but not the other way around. "Better now, Willow?" Xander asked her pissed off, and then slammed his foot down, crushing Ted's head.

Steadily calming down, Xander walked over to the faucet and splashed himself with a little cold water again, so he didn't look ridiculous. "Willow," Joyce said with an official tone. Willow turned to look, making a acknowledging, yet questioning sound. "New rules in this house; when there's a someone with enough strength to smash the entire house to pieces who is pissed off in the house - do _/not/_ annoy that person."

"Uh, sorry, got it," Willow said, shrinking back a bit at Joyce powerful tone. Buffy shivered for a moment, she'd never thought she'd hear her mom use that tone of voice on anyone but her.

Lexa looked sheepishly at the destroyed robot, and said, "Uh, sorry for the mess, but uh . . ."

"No apology necessary, Xander, although I'm sad he turned out to be that," Joyce spoke with a hint of sadness; Ted had been nice.

"Say, Xan," Willow said, taking in the destroyed robot with big 'oh goody' eyes, "how do you know this wasn't a nice android like Data from Star Trek?"

Xander looked at Willow incredulously. Buffy was the one to answer Willow, "We're on the Hellmouth, Willow."

"Oh, right," Willow muttered.

"What do we do with him?" Joyce wondered at the robot.

"Can I have him for spare parts, and you know, research?" Willow asked with a grin big enough for someone winning a hundred million dollars in a lottery, her eyes sparkling with excitement.

"Just don't try to repair him, Will," Buffy told her friend with warning.

"I won't, I swear," Willow replied.

-----

Some time later the three of them sat up in Buffy's room on her bed, watching tv.

"Ooh, Buffy, look," Willow said with a grin, "There's David Chokachi, isn't he hot?"

"I don't know, Willow," Lexa said with a grin, "Buffy, see, David Hasselhoff is there, a real man, not that polished momma's boy. You like that one better don't you? I certainly do."

"I like both," Buffy said with a grin, and the seen changed. "Willow, Xander quick; there's Yasmine Bleeth, hot brunette in a skimpy bathing suit, don't you guys like that."

"Oh, do I ever like her," Willow said with a grin, sucking up the screen with her face.

"Uhuh," Lexa said with hot eyes.

Buffy laughed out, and then put her forehead in her hands in shame. "This is soo wrong, we should quit this quickly," Buffy said, laughter in her voice.

"Yeah, Baywatch is way too easy," Lexa said with a grin, making Buffy laugh out loud more. "We all got what? A thousand points already?"

"Yep," Willow said taking the remote and flipping the channels. "This sucks, no more hot guys or babes on tv, what's this world coming to." Buffy rolled off her bed with laughter.

"Will, I think we broke her," Lexa said, with a huge grin, pointing at the downed Buffy.

"We know the secret weapon to downing a Slayer - laughter. With great power, comes great responsibility, Xan; this should remain between you and me," Willow said with a cheeky grin.

"Absolutely, pinky swear," Lexa said, and they did, making the laughter coming from the bottom grow louder.

After a few moments, Buffy managed to force her head over the bed's edge, holding onto the bed. She looked at her friends and muttered, "You two are impossible."

The two shrugged, and Willow said, "Ten years of practice, Buffy, another few years, and you'll be a well-oiled part of the machine."

"Hubba, hubba, hubba," Lexa muttered looking at Buffy with a tongue hanging out. Then lolled out, "Well-oiled." Buffy fell back down laughing. Lexa gave Willow a poke with her elbow and said, "Too easy."

"Yep. We need another target," Willow said with a grin. "How about Giles?"

-----

Friday

Oz had chosen a comedy for his night out with Cordelia. Better to break the ice with some humor so to speak. So far so good; they had left the movie theater in good spirits, and then he had taken her to a restaurant - the local McDonald's, where Oz poured on the charm and the humor some more. Cordelia had an amazing laugh, he found, and he wanted to see and hear at as often as he could.

"So, the chicken says to the chick in the egg still stuck in her passage, 'If you don't come out, I'll get my husband and have you ripped out, you probably won't survive,'" Oz said, smiling as he watched Cordelia snicker in anticipation. Then he finished, "Says the chick from the egg, 'No, you won't.' 'Why not?' the chicken returns annoyed. Says the chick, 'There's no way he'll mistake a half-hawk chick for one of his own.'"

Cordelia laughed out loud, and almost sprayed Oz with her diet coke. "Oh, god," Cordelia blurted out, "Oz."

Oz smiled at her. "So, I'm in the neighborhood of the White Knight yet?" Cordelia's smile faltered and she looked down at her half-eaten hamburger, suddenly not in the mood anymore. "Do you want to tell me the real reason why you want him so much?" Oz prompted, deciding with the laughter to mellow her into it, he could get to the answer, the answer he somehow knew he needed desperately in order to get to this girl.

"Why do you say they aren't the real reasons?" Cordelia asked him a little angrily, not liking how he could cut to her so much.

Oz smiled wistfully, and said, "Because apart from the hero bit, all of them are superficial. And you're not that shallow."

"I most certainly am," Cordelia protested immediately.

Oz grinned and brought up his hands, starting to count on his fingers, "I'm short; not that well kept; I change my hair color to weird colors all the time; I barely have any ambition, most certainly not money wise and I told you that; you apologized for using me to make someone else jealous; you gave me the opportunity of a real date; you not once complained about my dingy van; you're laughing to my jokes in a McDonald's,. and if I put my mind to it, I can probably think of a few more." Cordelia looked at him with a dropped jaw, then blushing. Oz smiled and added, "Now, those reasons will be great additional reasons, icing on the cake, but they aren't enough for you to really want him."

Cordelia shrank back, suddenly a little afraid of the guy in front of her. She knew he was smart, but she never thought this smart, or this observant; it was almost like . . . Cordelia shook her head - no, don't think about it. She couldn't afford that, she knew Xander for ages, and he had shown her several times over he wouldn't . . . but she didn't know that about this guy. "Hey," Oz said, feeling guilty all of a sudden, he hadn't quite expected this reaction, "don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you or anything, or use that against you."

"Please, bring me home," Cordelia requested weakly.

"Okay," Oz said, and got up. He had no interest in spooking Cordelia more, so he'd bring her home no questions asked.

A few minutes later he was driving along merrily, or perhaps not so merrily with a pained Cordelia sitting next to him. The cheerleader had her arms wrapped around herself, a clear sign she was hurting. She was more then hurting; a volcano of emotions burned through her being, boiling inside her, the pressure mounting by the minute. The confusion and pain she had felt ever since Xander slammed the door shut on any possibility of a relationship between the two, and really the night before that even. The damn she had built around her emotions so long ago threatened to burst; for the past months she had lowered it bit by bit, thinking it less and less necessary, and now suddenly a massive flood had been poured inside her, and Oz had slammed a hole in it with simple ease tonight, the waters coming through. "Pull over," Cordelia whimpered, swallowing deeply.

Oz did as asked, and turned off the engine. "You're not going to walk are you?" Oz asked concerned. Cordelia shook her head, and then turned to look at him, a pleading look in her face. Oz took a guess, and slipped his hand along side her arm, placing it on her hand. He squeezed it, and asked again, "Why do you want him so much?"

Cordelia just looked down staring at his hand holding hers. "I-I . . ." Cordelia whimpered, and then it came all flooding out. "I'm a bitch; I've made myself into one. I'm the most popular girl in school, but I don't have any friends, except him . . ." She looked up, and looked into Oz' eyes, tears flowing from hers. "None want to be friends with 'me', they just want to be friends with the richest girl in town, or date her, but not him," Cordelia whimpered, swallowing away a lump. "He's never been intimidated by me, unlike the others. I insulted him, he insulted me back; the only others who dared that were his friends and when he was with them . . ." Cordelia went back to whimpering.

Cordelia hadn't really said much, but to Oz it really was already pretty clear now. -My god, she's beautiful,- he thought suddenly, -and I didn't see it until I spent time with her on these dates, he did, no doubt.-

His suspicion was about to be confirmed. Cordelia returned her eyes to his, and she continued, "He never cared about the money; he didn't even really tell me, 'you're evil, quit bugging me', like some of his friends wanted to." She paused again, whimpering, "The fighting back, always felt to me . . . 'you can be better' . . . he even said so, when I tried pursuing him . . . if you want me, you have to become better. He saw what I hid . . . what I walled off . . . what he wanted me to release so we could possibly be something." Cordelia sobbed, and sank her head down.

-She's so beautiful,- Oz thought again, and asked her tentatively, "Why did he break it off?"

"The insults," Cordelia whispered, "th-they showed me he didn't care about the money. They make me feel good about myself; they got us going." She swallowed heavily again, continuing, "His mother is an uncaring drunk, his father an abusive one, verbally, physically, he even sold Xander to the mob as a sex slave - he escaped though, and had his father arrested."

"Harsh," Oz noted, and finished, "and he didn't want to go down his path, so trading insults with a girlfriend was out of the question?"

Cordelia nodded, giving a sob, "I need him, I need him, he's the only friend I had."

Oz's super mind went into overdrive, connecting dots, putting puzzle pieces together, and so he concluded, "There's more, isn't there?" Cordelia actually shrank back from him. "You wouldn't have told me this if there wasn't more; you're much too good at hiding your real self. There's something else, something big."

"You'll hate me," Cordelia whimpered.

Oz leaned toward her and whispered, "I won't hate you, you are beautiful, and sexy, and so deep." Cordelia looked at him with some suspicion, so Oz added, "I'm like him you know, on a few key fronts. For one, I don't care about money, not one little bit. If I did, I'd be much more ambitious." He slowly pulled her toward him, and he found she didn't pull back. Gently, very gently, he placed his lips on hers, and gave her a short, but very feeling kiss.

Cordelia looked surprised at him, the kiss had been amazing. No tongue, no passion, just pure caring. Cordelia swallowed, and said, "I can't tell you, I can't."

"It's tearing you up inside," Oz said, not as a persuasion, just an observation. Cordelia shook her head. "Let's go find him. What's his address?"

"He doesn't want me," Cordelia answered weakly.

"Not as a girlfriend, but from what you told me about him, he'd never turn you away as a friend," Oz pointed out, calmly, giving her a gently expectant look. A moment later Xander's address came rolling off her tongue.

-----

A little while later Oz parked his van in an empty parking space next to Xander's apartment building. He ushered the still pained Cordelia toward the entrance, and then looked through the bells. "X, X," Oz started.

"A. Harris," Cordelia whimpered out. "Alexander."

"Ah," Oz said and rung the bell, then rung it again.

Finally an heavy breathing male voice came over the intercom, "Harris."

"Hey, Xander, this is Oz, and I've got Cordelia with me, could we come in?" Oz asked.

"Oh, yeah, sure," came the confused reply. A buzzer went, and the door opened.

Oz ushered Cordelia inside. "Where to now?" Oz asked her. Cordelia pointed forward. They rounded a corner to the right, which went immediately to the left, and Cordelia pointed to the door in the corner. Oz rung the bell there, and a few moments later, Xander opened the door.

If Oz didn't have a perfectly cool composition of uncaring about nearly anything, apart a few extremely important things - he'd feel inadequate and probably jealous. He had checked out his competition in the past few days in school of course, but however well he dressed, it didn't have the same impact as this. Xander was in sweat pants, and a loose sleeveless, training shirt. Sweat poured off his muscles, accentuating them, and with them still strained and tense from the serious workout he must have been doing; he positively looked like a Greek god.

"Hey?" he greeted, as in a room behind him where grunts and female yells, crashes.

"I'll get you for that!" one yelled, and then there was the distinctive sound of something hitting a body.

"Don't mind them, they're really going at it tonight, as you can see," Xander said with a smile and without missing a beat as explanation, and then immediately focused on the pained Cordelia. "Cordy?" he asked obviously surprised at Cordelia's state.

Cordelia couldn't take it anymore. She surged forward and threw herself around his neck, and cried. "What's wrong?" he asked, as he backed up a little, beckoning with one of the hands behind Cordelia's back for Oz to enter. Oz did so, and closed the door behind him, as Xander gently maneuvered the crying cheerleader toward the couch in the middle of the living room. Oz took the place in, and nodded impressed.

Xander made comforting sounds as he sat down, holding the cheerleader. He rubbed her back as she sobbed. "Hey, Cordy, what is it?" Xander asked, a little uncomfortable, not really knowing if he could do anything for the almost girlfriend, and now good friend.

"I killed," she said softly and burst out crying harder, having stopped caring that Oz might overhear - Xander would protect her, he wasn't turning her away. Xander blinked in confusion, looking at Oz who had rounded the couch. Cordelia's crying, alerted two more occupants of the apartment. From the gym Lotion and Buffy emerged, both sweaty and bruised, and looked in confusion and surprise at the sight.

"Can you explain that a bit," Xander said gently to her.

"I killed," Cordelia sobbed out, "I killed, and it wasn't a demon . . . that sword master . . . she was human." She hugged Xander tighter, sobbing, "I killed a human being; and the way I did it . . ." Cordelia coughed, and cried, and stuttered, then breathed in deeply before going on, "I've never- never moved, or f-fought l-li-li-like that before, Xander. I w-w-was a machine - a killing machine. I h-h-ha-have no right to fight like that . . . I ex-ex- I rose above myself; I reveled in it."

Cordelia cried out again, as Xander tensed the hug, and went, "Ssh. It's all right."

The cheerleader shook her head, and continued, "It-it was like; like everything I had ever learned- learned came together . . . dancing, fencing, the sword training, your and Lotion's training, all brought together, woven together i-in a single bright feeling; it was like it burned in my veins - a single need to stop her, for what she did to me, but- . . ." She felt her cheek, feeling a tiny thin line there still, which soon would be gone as well, ". . . what she was going to do to you, and the others, kill you. Th-th-that was my whole world; the burning need, the assassin, and the sw-sw-swords; she even seem to slow down . . ."

"Adrenaline," Oz coolly supplied, making everyone but Cordelia look at him, "Speeds up the brain, makes things appear to slow down, often focuses the mind on a single necessary task." As cool as he appeared, inside Oz's heart swelled, if Cordelia allowed it, he'd be her boyfriend for sure. She was amazing, she had from what he gathered stopped a highly trained, mistress of the sword assassin with lots of experience at being a cold-blooded killing machine with her own choice weapons, because her need to protect her boyfriend and friends propelled her in another state of being. She was a hero, an angelic hero.

"Xander, I don't want to be evil, I don't want to be a killer," Cordelia whimpered out.

"You're not, Cordelia," Xander told her with a smile, hugging her tighter, "You're not a killer, you're not evil. The Terakan needed to be stopped. Yes, she was human, but she was no better than the demons and vampires we kill. She was an assassin, and she was going to kill us if she got the chance. What you did was a good thing, no different from a policeman shooting a criminal."

"Then why do I feel so horrible?" Cordelia asked Xander, straightening up a bit, looking at him.

"So do policemen," Oz remarked casually, once more drawing attention to him. "Many need weeks if not months of therapy, and the support of their significant other." Everyone, even Cordelia looked at him now, continuing to look. Oz shrugged, "I have a good memory, notice how I don't know the exact reasons why someone feels so bad."

Lotion came forward, and placed a comforting hand on Cordelia's back. "You don't have to feel guilty, or pained, I killed a human too," Lotion said, remembering the satisfaction of snapping her neck. "An Amazon, she was evil, she was going to kill us, she needed to be stopped. You are a good person, Cordelia, and a good sparring partner, or as I call it, punching bag." Lotion smiled down at Cordelia, and the cheerleader's mouth quirked up just a bit.

"Yeah," Buffy added, shaken to the core of what she was allowed to witness. "You're not bad, Cordelia. If you hadn't done what you did, then we all might be dead. I'm more worried about Lotion being evil, than you are."

Lotion whipped her head at Buffy, and asked, "Does pig-nosed girl want another beating?"

"See what I mean?" Buffy told Cordelia with a grin.

"Buffy's got a point though," Xander said, turning Cordelia's much calmed down face toward him. "Lotion may not feel like you do, doesn't make her evil, but as long as you feel bad about being forced to perform a killing, you are most definitely not evil. Evil wouldn't only not feel any guilt, they'd revel in the feeling, in the sensation, they love killing. So you are a good person, Cordelia Chase."

Cordelia wiped away a few of her tears, and then suddenly felt embarrassed. Here she'd been bawling like a child, _/her/_, Cordelia Chase, Queen C of Sunnydale high. She rose from the couch, and mumbled a thank you to all of them. "Cor," Xander interrupted her, "if you feel bad again, need to talk, we'll be there for you, all of us. I'll make you a key too, and Lotion as well, I should have done that earlier. You're not bad, you're not weak for this, and there's nothing to be ashamed of, got that?"

Cordelia nodded. "Yeah, no worries," Buffy felt the need to add in, "consider us your therapists; this is between us. Won't even tell Willow and Giles if you don't want us to."

"Th-thank you," Cordelia said, surprised that Buffy and Lotion seemed to consider her a friend, not just another rival for Xander's love. "I-I think I'd like to go home, sleep."

"You can crash here if you want, both of you, I've got sleeping bags," Xander offered.

Cordelia shook her head, taking a deep breath, sniffing to get the last of the crying done. "I want to sleep in my own bed," she said, looking around lost.

"That would be my cue," Oz said with a smile, and gently placed his arm around Cordelia's waist. "Shall we?" Oz asked her. Cordelia nodded weakly and let herself be gently walked out.

"See you in school, Cordelia, or earlier if you feel like it," Xander greeted and, Buffy and Lotion added their own greets. Cordelia gave them a smile before walking onward.

Slowly Xander closed the door, feeling pained. "Damn," Buffy said, surprised at the rawness of her own emotions, "That was intense."

"Yeah, definitely, fuck," Xander said, never having given this possibility a single thought. To him, it had been simple; assassins come kill Buffy and Lotion and as a result other friends? Kill assassins before they succeed.

"How come you don't feel guilt?" Buffy asked Lotion.

The Amazon shrugged, and said, "Don't know for sure, but I suppose if you're raised with the idea that killing is bad, bad, bad, bad, or taught that killing is not good, and should be avoided, but there will be times when you can't . . ." Lotion shrugged, and said, "Even if you're mind knows you had no other choice, I can see you're emotions tell you it's bad."

"She'll be alright," Xander said, turning to face his remaining two friends, "Cordelia is tough, she'll get through it, we just need to be there for her."

"We will be," Buffy said, resolutely.

To Be Continued . . .

Author's notes:

There, I hope you guys liked the part, lots of humor, then the heavy stuff. Give me feedback!


	22. part 22

Title:

1/2 Blessing, 1/2 Curse - Season 1 - 22?

Author:

3D Master

Feedback:

3d.masterchello.nl

Website:

http/members.chello.nl/-jg.temolder1/

Rating:

PG-13

Keywords:

X-Over Ranma ½ / Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Action, Humor, Drama, AU.

Summary:

The eggs are not so bad this time around.

Disclaimer:

Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its characters do not belong to me, but Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy Productions. Ranma ½ belongs to Rumiko Takahashi.

----22----

Spike rolled up into his hideout in a wheelchair, a thick book in his lap. He grimaced, as he watched a fully powered Drusilla make preparations for something from her deranged mind. A few minions were around, and Spike addressed a few, "Hey, you!"

The group of five minions turned and came over. He handed out a small piece of paper, and said, "Follow the instructions to the letter. You will be finding me two items, that you'll bring me."

The vampire had a cocky streak, and bending over a bit, said with a grin, "Are you certain your little mummy lets you?"

Spike's hand snatched out, and grabbed him by the throat, pulling him very close to himself. "Do you want to bloody live, or should I send you to hell?" Spike hissed out, as his claws drew blood.

"Live, live," the vampire gurgled out, barely managed to get air past the viciously powerful grip.

Spike nodded and turned to the other four, "Anyone else think just because I'm temporarily in this here contraption, they get disobey me?" The vampires quickly shook their heads. Spike nodded again and pushed the vampire he held with this right hand back. He held out the paper, and said, "Then get going."

-----

Buffy's fist moved with enormous force through air. She grimaced as she saw Xander bend back just in time. He kicked out with his right leg and she avoided the kick, by twisting sideways to her left. With a yell of effort her left fist connected with Xander's kidneys. Xander groaned, but had his muscles tightened so he was well protected. He staggered while turning around. Buffy didn't give him the opportunity to recover and followed up with a right to Xander's chest. When it connected, she grimaced satisfactorily. Xander jumped over her leg sweep though, and in turn gave her a good solid upper cut. Buffy groaned with the pain as she was launched into the air, but with effort and ignoring the pain she managed to go in a backward somersault and then stretched out again, smashing both her feet into Xander's chest who had come after her. As Xander was flung back with a grunt, Buffy landed on her hands and flipped further onward.

Breathing heavily she watched as Xander got up from his position against the wall of the library's second level. Above him was the wooden railing. Buffy's eyes widened with surprised as Xander suddenly came at her with great speed, and obviously power. She managed to block his first punch, but after that came a flurry of blows she couldn't block. A few moments later, with an elbow across her right cheek, she slumped into unconsciousness.

An exhausted Xander staggered back, and bent over to lean on his knee. His breathing was labored, and there were several bruises on his face. "Fuck," Xander sighed out, and then forced himself to stretch out, groaning. He looked over to see Giles, Jenny, and Willow watching the fight, and taking him and Buffy in. "She's definitely the Slayer," he offered. Slowly he walked over to a chair at the left table and let himself fall into it.

"Wow," Jenny said with a little surprise, "She's definitely better."

"Indeed," Giles added unable to suppress a proud tone.

"You're telling me?" Xander asked still breathing hard.

Buffy in her tight workout outfit groaned, and slowly came to. She sat up, and groggily took in the library, with the exhausted Xander and the others sitting around. "Damn," she groaned and slowly got up. "I still can't beat you."

Willow was the one who spoke up, "Yeah, what's with that lately, Buffy? You seem hell bent on beating or friend and love-interest to death for the past weeks."

"Well, no that, uh . . ." Buffy - also breathing hard but Slayer healing rapidly bringing it under control - then decided to come clean with the feelings she had, "The Order of Teraka. They managed the almost kill me a few times, the same for you, and some of them were human - _/human/_!" Buffy looked down a bit, apologetic for her outburst and then continued, "I'm the Slayer, and I felt useless and weak. I want to be strong, I don't want to be useless anymore . . ." Buffy whimpered weakly, defeated almost, "I want to fight alongside Xander and Lotion and you guys and actually make a difference, help protect you and others. I mean I'm the Slayer, I'm supposed to be stronger than even the strongest human so I can take on the strongest demons, right? I'm pretty sure I'm gonna get my ass handed to me on a silver platter by anything with even just a little bit of power by hell's standards."

Xander came over, besides his exhaustion and took her in a tight hug. Willow only arrived a moment later because she was further away. She was a red whirlwind when she took Buffy and Xander in her arms.

After the comforting session was over and the three of the broke apart, they looked over embarrassed to Giles and Jenny but found them in each other's arms, relaxedly. "All right," Xander decided to take over, looking at Buffy, who perked up at the tone of his voice, "I was going to do teach you this tomorrow so you had a time to rest, but let's eliminate this whole 'I'm useless' bit, okay?"

"Okay," Buffy said, wondering what he was talking about.

"The Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire technique," Xander said with a smile, while Buffy's eyes became huge. "Now, Buffy, it's really simple once you figured it out and have enough energy to pull it off; punch using your chi, not your muscles, to make the movement. Like a leaf that's caught in an air current, it can move ver fast. You need to get your arms get caught in your chi."

Buffy nodded, tried, and failed miserably. Xander grinned and came over, giving her pointers. She tried again, but failed. Xander then gave several more pieces of advice, and indeed Buffy's hands moved very fast.

Buffy looked with wide sparkling eyes at her hands, and Xander said, "All right, now perform it on me so we can see if that was fast enough to consider a real Chestnuts."

Xander walked to across from Buffy and beckoned. "You better be ready, Xan," Buffy said with a grin. She took a few rapid steps forward, and yelled, "Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire!" At the same time she made the technique and her fists flashed with amazing speed. Xander did his own Chestnuts, but as a defensive moves, blocking all of Buffy's.

"Yep, that's it, Buffy," Xander said with a proud grin, "you did it!"

"YES!" Buffy roared out suddenly, while an evil gleam formed in her yes. "Lotion can't! Time for some payback; I'll kick her ass!" Buffy then raced out of the library.

"What? No! Buffy! AAAH!" Xander yelled after her and then prepared to follow her.

"Let them get rid of some estrogen, Xander," Jenny said with a unconcerned smile. Giles nodded.

Xander gave them a horrified look, and said, "Kiss of Death remember?" He then raced after Buffy but he was still somewhat tired. "Damn Slayer healing," he hissed under his breath in the hallway outside the library. Willow looked stricken and then raced after both of them.

Giles and Jenny looked at each other, and Giles said, "Oh, boy."

-----

Buffy entered via the back entrance to Lotion's and Deo's house. In the small backyard / courtyard, Lotion and Cordelia were sparring. They looked surprised and stopped as Buffy came noisily barging in. "Alright, Lotion, payback time," Buffy said with a huge grin, cracking her knuckles. "For all the times you knocked me and my fellow Slayer out, I'm going to beat you up good."

Lotion smirked, and asked Cordelia, "Pig-nosed girl really likes pain, doesn't she?" She turned back to the advancing Buffy and said, "Maybe you should get a job at an S&M parlor."

"Yeah, as the mistress," Buffy returned the joke calmly with a wide smirk. That made Lotion's eyebrows rise and take Buffy in more carefully. This wasn't the quick to anger and charge in Buffy, which was mostly a sign of her weakness. Buffy added, "And I'll take you with me as my slave." Lotion's eyes narrowed dangerously.

"Oookay, I'm out of this," Cordelia said backing away to the side, having no interest in getting in between the two super powered girls. She wasn't weak herself, but she knew she couldn't get anywhere near the Slayer, let alone Lotion, or was the other way around from now on. Either way, judging from the seriously sharp insults they'd thrown each other, it was best not to get in between the two.

A moment later the two hot-headed girls clashed. The tall, Amazonian Amazon versus the short-statured, ex-cheerleader Slayer - it would be an epic battle. The fact that Buffy deflected Lotion's first two punches, ducked underneath the kick, and landed a solid blow to Lotion's stomach attested to that more than anything else. Normally, Buffy'd be knocked out with just one punch or kick, but now she was the one that landed the first punch. It made Lotion back up and seriously reevaluate her opponent, as well as bring Deo out to the backdoor to take in the fight.

Lotion then surged forward, twisted her body to avoid Buffy's next blow, and slammed a solid fist across Buffy's cheek. The slayer staggered back under the force, but stayed standing instead of being launched off her feet and slam into a wall. Indeed, her chi control and absorbing the strength of blows with her body had greatly increased. Buffy blocked Lotion's next right with her left hand, and kicked hard into Lotion's stomach. The Amazon bent over a bit, but refused to be fully doubled over. With a angry yell suddenly grabbed Buffy's shoulders and slammed her knee with all her power into Buffy's stomach.

"OOF!" Buffy wheezed out as she sucked int air. She had breathed out before the impact and tightened her muscles to absorb the blow, but it had still been magnificently powerful. Seeing Lotion attempt a follow up with high kick, Buffy suddenly made a leg sweep to the Amazon's standing leg. But Lotion jumped up, making Buffy mix.

Buffy grinned evilly as she sped up her twist and stood up, Lotion was still in the air at the perfect height. "BUFFY NO!" Cordelia, Lotion, and Deo looked surprised as Xander burst into courtyard and made the scream.

Buffy didn't listen.

"Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire!" Buffy yelled, and to Deo's surprise the Slayer actually did pull off the extremely difficult technique - no doubt taught to her by Xander, because there was no way the dumb blonde would be able to figure it out on her own. Within the next second, Buffy landed more than a 100 powerful punches into Lotion's stomach, who was gasping in pain and for breath. The chestnuts finished, Buffy decided to add one final power right cross across Lotion's chin before she even landed.

"Agh!" Lotion exclaimed in pain as her head snapped back before she was launched across the courtyard. Pain blossomed in her face, and some blood flew from her mouth, which filled with a metallic taste. A moment later she crashed painfully against the wall of the house and slumped down, only half conscious, groaning.

"Yes! YES!" Buffy yelled out with girly shrieks, jumping up and down like a small kid about to be handed a candy store. "I beat you! I did it! Payback is bitchy, revenge is better kept in the fridge, and more of that! WHOOW!"

"Oh, no," Xander muttered - he was too late, his eyes transfixed on Lotion's prone form, which was starting to stir.

Buffy quit her happy behavior and looked a little perturbed at her boyfriend, "I finally defeated the pompous, unfeminist pain-in-the-ass, and _/that's/_ what you say?"

Coughing for breath, Willow came staggering through the door and fell through her knees. "You . . . fast . . ." she managed to wheeze out, trying to catch her breath.

Xander payed her now mind, just looking with dread as Lotion steadily became more active. Cordelia look at the small gathering of her friends and wondered what was going on now. "Xander?" Buffy prompted and then looked as Lotion slowly got up.

Buffy looked at the Amazon who was starting to get a bruise on her chin. Buffy got ready in case she had to fight again, smiling a bit. Lotion spit out some blood, and then slowly came walking over to Buffy. Buffy got out of her fight stance and looked surprised at Lotion. She had expected a lot, but not Lotion walking over to her gently, seemingly swaying her hips slightly. When she was about two meters away, Lotion moved her lips in a kissing position. What the hell? It was only men they were marrying weren't they? Amazon defeat man in combat . . . yes, definitely man only.

"Catch," came Deo's voice, breaking the silence and a sword twisted through the air, and Lotion casually caught it. Buffy took a step back, and watched in shock as Lotion started bending over to reach her cheek, still wanting to kiss her it seemed. The sword brought it all back to her. _'/Kiss of Death./'_ That was what Xander had said. Defeated by a woman outside of the tribe. Buffy froze in shock. It was one thing to fight her unarmed, but a sword would allow Lotion to slice her in itsy, bitsy, little Buffy-bits, and that was not something she was looking forward too.

"No!" Xander ran over with all his speed and placed himself in between Buffy and Lotion, arms spread out.

Lotion straightened back up, and said with a resolute but painful voice, "Step out of the way, Xander . . . it's tradition."

"You're going to spend the rest of your life in jail?" he countered Lotion, knowing the cops would come after her.

"Step out of the way," Lotion spoke with a growl, pain in her eyes.

"I won't let you kill her, Lotion, that's a guarantee," Xander said dangerously.

It was Deo who answered this time, "It must be done, son-in-law. Honor demands."

"Fuck honor, and fuck you're antiquated traditions," Xander hissed, angry now. He looked close into Lotion's eyes, and said angrily, "I will _/not/_ let you kill her, Lotion. I _/will/_ kill you first, and I don't care what kind of deal about dating we got. You will keep your fingers off of her." Lotion and Deo looked stricken, and Xander pressed on. "Do you really want that, Deo? Not getting me is one set of dishonor for your daughter, but being killed by him, or her mother killing him to keep it from happening - what will the tribe say to that?"

"It's tradition, defeated by woman not part of the tribe, kill woman," Lotion said almost pitifully pointing her free hand at Buffy, who instinctively put herself behind Xander's protective form.

Xander wracked his brain, and repeated, "I will not let you do it." Then he had an idea, "Consider her part of the tribe then. You're friends for god's sake, practically family, think of her as an honorary Amazon!"

"Hmm," Deo said rather loudly, stepping outside the house. "Every Amazon as a right of passage and adulthood must undergo a ritual. Someone not born of the tribe may join it by undergoing that same ritual."

Lotion and Buffy perked up. Buffy looking over Xander's shoulder, while Lotion looked back over her shoulder. Lotion's eyes widened, and said, "They may?."

Cordelia, always keen, got up and said, "Hey, I think it better I do that too, what if I accidentally defeat Lotion in a sparring match? And your tribe is nuts if they actually consider this and especially that an offense worthy of killing someone."

"I'm not going to become an Amazon!" Buffy said indignant, seemingly revolted with the idea.

"Buffy, please," Xander said.

"No," Buffy said and then noticed Lotion's eyes narrowing.

Xander turned around, took Buffy by the shoulders and looked deeply in her eyes, "Buffy, please, for me? I don't fancy having to fight Lotion and Deo . . ."

Buffy looked up into Xander's brown orbs, and felt herself grow weak. She sighed and said, "Oh, oh well, fine, okay. But don't you think just because I'll be 'part of the tribe', I'm going to kill any girl not part of it who manages to defeat me, or marry any man who gets lucky."

"That is your choice," Deo spoke diplomatically. "Although the tribe will consider you dishonored should that happen, but I don't think someone who doesn't care about that will take any value to what the tribe thinks of them."

"Damn, straight," Buffy grumbled folding her arms across her chest. "Not that I have no honor, but I have higher honor."

"Oh," Lotion started, preparing to put the smack down on Buffy for that slight.

"So what does this ritual entail anyway?" Willow interrupted quickly to stave off another catfight - although that could be fun to watch; problem was they'd be really fighting, not dragging each other around in the mud tearing each other's clothes off. Willow had found a few of her dad's Playboy tapes, which made her blush a little - luckily she was still red with the heat of running here.

Deo nodded and explained, "The women must sit on a symbol with two members of the tribe who will be witnesses to the pledging. Amidst fire and envoking the goddess the applicants must pledge allegiance to the tribe, there will be some chanting and asking the goddess for her blessing. Finally, one will get a tattoo on her right upper arm." Deo pulled up her sleeve showing that the tattoo. The tattoo was an intricate design of circles, a few quare crosses, and some more exotic symbols - the whole was very colorful. Undoubtedly the symbol had something to do with the Amazon goddesses and possibly gods, as well as the Amazon tribe, its history and their philosophy. Deo then added, "The whole ritual is done naked . . ." Xander visibly perked up, as did Willow a bit, while Buffy and Cordelia looked shocked at the announcement. Deo finished, ". . . this to show you have nothing to hide, no weapons snuck in to kill people with, and you tell the bare naked truth, it's very symbolical."

While Cordelia and Buffy were still digesting the thing, Xander shared a quick smirk with Willow who returned it. Then he said, "Ah, I think me - that is, Lexa - should join the Amazon tribe as well. Indeed, should some Amazons come this way, I don't want to be condemned to death if I feel its necessary to beat a few up."

Buffy looked shocked at Xander now, while Cordelia folded her arms across her chest and said dryly, "You just want to see us naked."

"Moi? What for?" Xander asked innocent, "I'm just concerned for my life, that's all."

"Hell no!" Buffy exclaimed once more indignant. She turned and told to Deo, "Tell him he can't join us, girl-Xander or not."

Xander looked at Buffy, and told her, "What's it to you? I've already seen you naked." Buffy shot Xander a deadly glare, that made take a step back. "I'm just saying . . ."

Lotion was the one to tell Buffy, "Lexa welcome to join, in fact, I insist on it - future husband should be part of the tribe."

"What? But why? What do you care? _/Should/_ he marry you, he's automatically part of the tribe!" Buffy exclaimed.

Cordelia rolled her eyes and explained dryly, "That way she can show of her magnificent body and have Xander inevitably make comparisons between her, and you two, and she'd have better chances."

"Me?" Lotion replied with even more innocence that Xander. "No, I'm thinking of the tribe. To have a fighter of Xander's and Lexa's caliber in the tribe, would bring great prestige."

"I think I want to join as well," Willow spoke with a little smirk.

Buffy turned around and faced her best friend with shock, "Willow? Why? What happened to 'these Amazons are nothing but weak-willed, pathetic girls who're potential abuse victims?'"

Cordelia sighed with the obviousness, and once more coolly explained, "She just wants to see us naked too, as well as Lexa."

"Me?" Willow answered with the same innocence. "No! Since becoming a witch, I'm interested in Goddess rituals, this one seems very interesting. Of course, I've always been interested in the Amazons and there way of life, it is interesting, even if they aren't quite the champions of women as I saw them. Besides, best friend here, wouldn't let you go through the ordeal alone."

Buffy looked with utter disbelief that Willow had managed to say that with a straight face. "Willow," she said with disbelief and disappointment.

"What?" Willow answered innocently, already imagining the upcoming ritual, and noticed Xander had the same twinkle in his eyes as she had, while having the smile of the cat that ate the canary on his face that was threatening to form on hers as well.

"Then it's settled," Deo said, saving Willow from Buffy's scrutiny. "You four will become Amazons. We shall hold the ritual Saturday." She then turned around and went back into the house.

"Don't look so smug," Buffy warned Xander, who quickly hid his smile. "How the hell am I going to get this past mom?"

"Lie by omission of certain details," Cordelia supplied with a grin, actually starting to look forward to it. There was a certain appeal to being present to see how this disaster would end up.

From outside came the sound of a heavy bike, making everyone look toward the sound. The sound turned off, and a familiar voice called, "Lotion!" The still opened back entrance gate, swung open, showing Pike Ambrose.

"Oh, no," Lotion said, shaking her head. "What's _/he/_ doing back here?"

"Lotion!" Pike called with everyone looking at him with wide eyes, except for Lotion who looked down embarrassed and continued shaking her head. "I have trained with great karate masters; I can defeat you in combat now, and take your hand in marriage."

"What?" Buffy exclaimed, while Lotion walked toward the gate grumbling annoyance.

"I can't believe this," Cordelia muttered, while Xander sighed, already knowing the outcome of this.

"Let's get this over with quickly," Lotion muttered as she reached Pike and pushed him outside.

The other four occupants of the yard exited along with the two. Lotion stayed with the gate, while Pike backed away a bit to the right in the alley. He went into a karate stance, and said, "Don't worry, my beautiful angel, I will go easy on you."

Lotion rolled her eyes, while the other's eyes widened in disbelief. Buffy spoke up with concern for her ex-boyfriend, "Pike, she's more powerful than a Slayer. A few months- . . ."

"Not now, Buffy," Pike interrupted her with anticipation in his eyes, "this is important."

"But . . ." Buffy whimpered in defeat, as Pike came forward at Lotion who just stood there with her arms by her side, looking decidedly annoyed.

"Yah!" Pike yelled throwing his first karate chop, which Lotion deflected with an air of indifference. "Yah!" came Pike's second chop, which she tossed aside easily. Tired of this ridiculous game, Lotion threw one devastating punch to Pike's chest, using mostly her chi so she wouldn't break every bone under her fist. "AAH!" Pike yelled in pain, and surprise as he was simply launched backward, in a big arc through the air. "Woaw!" he added.

Lotion watched him fly away with satisfaction, and then saw a man carrying a big tray of eggs coming from a side street from behind a wooden fence. Her eyes widened as she noticed Pike hurtling right for him, and since she recognized the man she yelled, "MR. WHITMORE, LOOK OUT!"

"Huh?" Mr. Whitmore muttered, stopping and looking up from the eggs to his left. Thus, Pike did not slam into the teacher, but only in the eggs and the teacher's hands holding them. Pike tumbled down, along with the eggs. He crashed painfully to the floor, and then the eggs slammed on top of him and the pavement around him. They broke, and the insides of the eggs splashed over him, covering him instantly in red, blue, and whitish sludge.

The five teens ran over, as Pike lay lolling half-unconscious on the floor, covered in egg gunk. "Blalolanieeh," he said, eyes rolling about randomly in his sockets.

"Are you alright, Mr. Whitmore?" Willow asked concerned at the slightly overweight, middle-aged teacher.

"Ah, fine, Ms. Rosenberg, but the eggs for the parenthood experiment are ruined," Mr. Whitmore spoke indicating the broken eggs and the young man covered in them. "I will have to buy new ones."

Pike spit some of the gunk out of his mouth with a disgusted look, and blabbed, "Sheee's amaaazing."

"Well, look on the bright side, Mr. Whitmore," Xander said with a big grin, "They were all rotten eggs obviously. Now the classroom won't stink."

"It does seem that way, Mr. Harris, always look on the bright side," Mr. Whitmore spoke with a smile.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Whitmore, he was bothering me, and . . . uh . . .well," Lotion spoke with an embarrassed smile, hoping she wasn't going to get in trouble.

"Oh, no, Ms. Lu, knowing a healthy dose of self-defense is a must for girls these days," Mr. Whitmore said with a smile to the Amazon. "I'll have to go back to get a new tray of eggs, unless . . ." The teacher looked down at the still out of it Pike, and said, "What about him?"

"Oh, don't worry," Buffy spoke up, taking a few steps forward to stand at Pike's head. "He's my ex, I'll take care of him . . . uh, I didn't mean killing him, obviously . . . just give him a shower . . . not with me in it . . . you know what I mean . . . sorry, I didn't wish to sound snooty, Mr. Whitmore . . . I'll shut up now."

"Don't worry, Ms. Summers. I'll see you in class tomorrow, students," Mr. Whitmore said pleasantly, then turned around and walked off to buy new eggs.

"Ugh," Buffy commented at the dirty Pike. She grabbed his left hand which seemed slime free, and pulled him to sitting position.

Pike blinked, and looked up. "Buffy," he said, and Buffy nodded glad.

"Come on, get up," she ordered, taking Pike low around the waist where there shouldn't be any gunk. "I tried to warn you, didn't I? She's stronger than a Slayer, although no longer stronger than me."

As Pike rose to his feet, looking with in-love eyes at Lotion. The Amazon narrowed her eyes at Buffy and warned, "Don't be so smug, Slayer. You might have defeated me just now, doesn't mean you'll defeat me all the time."

"Come on, Pike, I'll get you a shower, ew those eggs stink," Buffy said and supported him toward his bike. She turned around and said, "Guys, I'll see you guys later okay? Mom's taking me to the mall, and I shouldn't be late."

"See ya, Buffy," Xander and Willow greeted.

"That loser is Buffy's first boyfriend?" Cordelia asked in disbelief at the vagrant. "No wonder she's all messed up, if she didn't start out that way, he'd have make sure she ended up that way."

"You mean, like you had this huge crush on loser Xander?" Willow asked sweetly.

"Hey!" Xander exclaimed as Cordelia turned to look at the witch, up ahead Pike started his motor and drove off with a very careful Buff on the back, making sure she didn't go into the gunk.

Cordelia told Willow icily, "Temporary insanity, already cured. I've got a lead guitarist for a boyfriend now; super cool, nothing like loser Xander."

"HEY! I'm standing right _/here/_, you know?" Xander called out in disbelief.

"Anyone call future husband loser again, I will beat them to a pulp," Lotion warned, still pissed Buffy managed to defeat her, making her test the bruise on her chin.

"Thank you," Xander said with a smile at the Amazon, who smiled back, and batted her eyelashes at him.

-----

"Mother, what are you up to?" Lotion asked once the others had gone.

"Nothing, dear," Deo said with a smile.

"Oh, no! I don't trust you, you agreed to that solution much too easily," Lotion exclaimed. "What are you up to?"

Deo opened a cupboard and pulled out a scroll. "Nothing, dear, just preparing for the ritual," she said again.

"Mother, if you try anything, I will hurt you," Lotion warned angrily.

"Sweetheart, my daughter, I have only your well-being in mind. Trust me when I say, that constantly trying to kill a stronger-growing Slayer might be bad for your health. That is the only reason why I agreed to it, and why I now prepare for the ritual," Deo answered her calmly.

Lotion held up the curved sword, and asked dangerously, "Is that why you tossed me this to kill her with?"

"You still had the element of surprise then, if was obvious the happily jumping Slayer wasn't expecting you to try to kill her," Deo answered Lotion calmly.

Lotion scrutinized her mother for a long minute, and then said, "_/Don't/_ try anything." She then hung the sword back into its rightful place, and walked to her room.

-----

"I cannot believe you," Buffy muttered as she got off Pike's bike, her nose still wrinkled at the awful smell. A very dejected - and disgusted with the smell as well - Pike slowly got off as well, taking in his ex's new home. "You actually want _/her/_ as your wife, and you thought you could beat her up with a few months of training. What do you see in her anyway?"

Pike looked with disbelief at Buffy, opting not to speak and get more of the disgusting egg taste in his mouth, since it was still plastered over his face. Buffy rolled her eyes, and said, "Despite the boobs." Pike narrowed her eyes at her. Buffy sighed with frustration, and said, "Let's just get you a damn shower first."

Buffy opened the door, and her mother's voice sounded from within immediately. "Buffy, you're late. We're supposed to be off- . . . what's that smell?" The figure of Joyce Summers entered with the visible field in the living room from the hallway. She looked through the same door to the hallway where Buffy and Pike stood in front of the front door. "You!"

Joyce Summers came forward with an angry look, while a surprised and afraid Buffy tried to calm her down. "Mom, he's just here to use the shower, he got his ass handed to him, and rotten eggs splashed all over him," Buffy quickly burst out.

Pike looked a little afraid at the angry mother, who spat out, "You vagrant, dumb, dropout. You better not try and corrupt my daughter again, you- . . ."

"Mother!" Buffy said sharply, blushing with embarrassment, "He's not here to corrupt me. Hell, he's not even here to get me back. He wants Lotion, she's the one who kicked his ass, because he's decided to beat her in combat according to that ridiculous 'ancient Amazon tradition', if you remember. I just offered a shower because that's what good exes do, right?"

Joyce blinked, and then asked Pike, "Really?"

"Yes, the angel Lotion, one day she shall be mine. I _/will/_ find a way to defeat her and marry the most beautiful woman in the world," Pike muttered with a sweet smile and a look in his eyes that would be characterized with hearts if this were a cartoon. Suddenly his expression changed and he started spitting, "Ptuh, ptuh, ptuh, ew." Then he closed his lips stiffly again.

Joyce immediately perked up and pointed up the stairs, "Well, in that case, my shower is your shower." Buffy rolled her eyes, while Pike made a grateful bow, not daring to speak again. He started up the stairs. "He's quite a nice young man, isn't he?" Joyce said with a big grin. Buffy rolled her eyes again and started for the stairs.

Joyce sniffed the air again, and then told her daughter, "A shower and a change of clothes wouldn't be a luxury for you either, Buffy."

Buffy stopped and looked down at her sweaty, dirty workout clothes. She raised her arm and smelled her arm pit. Wrinkling her nose, she offered, "Was working out, be right back."

Buffy raced up the stairs and easily sped past Pike, and dragged him into the bathroom, the second door left to the right into corridor. "Okay, towels are in the cupboard above the sink," Buffy said, pointing right to the large cupboard above and to the left of the sink. "Wash cloths are there as well, but mom and me are going to the mall, and we're already late so I'm taking a quick shower first, okay?" Pike nodded, not wanting to talk.

"AND YOU DON'T GET TO WATCH!" came Buffy's mother's voice from down stairs.

"Exactly, wait in the hallway," Buffy said pointing out the door. Pike left, Buffy closed the door, and then muttered to herself, "How does she do that? Is she psychic, or did I inherit Slayer hearing from her?"

"MOTHER'S INSTINCTS, YOU'LL GET THEM TOO WHEN YOU MAKE ME A GRANDMOTHER!"

Buffy groaned, eyes wide, at the scary vision. Someday she had thought, but she was sixteen for gods sakes, those thoughts shouldn't arrive till ten years from now, just the pleasantries that made them should be on her mind! She quickly stripped, and got in the shower.

A few minutes later, having given herself a thorough but quick cleaning with shampoo, she raced with towels tied around her to her own room. She got herself a new set of underwear, and put herself in tight black pants and a tight purple to dark pink shirt, which hugged her form. It had a v-neck but stopped short just before any cleavage became visible. After putting on a pair of shoes with middle-high heels, that allowed her to move but just gave her sexy, feminine air, she went back out into the hallway. She stopped for a moment and called out, "Pike! We'll leave keys on the kitchen table in case you wanna go out before we return, key?" There came an answering mumble, and Buffy quickly went down the stairs, finding her mother finishing a cup of tea in the kitchen.

Buffy stopped when she looked up, noticing for the first time how rather clear sound from the bathroom was rather clear in the kitchen. She had never been in the kitchen while someone showered. She turned to her mother, scrutinizing her, and asked, "So, does mother's instincts make you buy a house that allows you to listen into your kids when they're in the shower?" Joyce shrugged innocently, sipping the final tea away and got up to put the now empty tea cup in the dishwasher. Buffy sighed and turned around, and then suddenly her eyes went wide, while her cheeks flared red. Washing wasn't the only thing she did - had done - in the shower. There was just no way . . . her mother would at least vacate . . . no, absolutely no way that her mother even heard that little . . . uh, uh. Buffy started walking, and said quickly, refusing to look at her mother, "Let's go, we're late remember?"

"Yes, dear," Joyce said with a completely innocent tone while catching up to her daughter.

-----

Joyce and Buffy walked through the mall. Buffy had been busy working up the courage with everything she had and finally managed it. "Mom," she started, hopefully.

"Mmh," came Joyce's reply as she checked through the list to see they had everything they should have so far.

"I need to become an Amazon," Buffy said weakly as they walked along.

"That's ni- . . ." Joyce suddenly stopped in her tracks, and turned to her daughter who had stopped as well. "What?"

"Yeah, it's this ritual. We'll all be sitting in a circle, chant some stuff, make a pledge, and that's it," Buffy said with a smile, looking at her mother's face and knowing what the answer was. "Willow, Xander, and Cordelia are doing it too, it's nothing big."

"I suppose if they jump off a cliff, you'll jump too, claiming it's nothing big," Joyce told her daughter with a measured look.

"It really is nothing big," Buffy said nervously.

"If it isn't, why do you _/need/_ to do it?" Joyce asked her daughter suspiciously.

Buffy shrugged and said, "Because . . ."

Joyce narrowed her eyes further, making Buffy gulp, and said, "What are you not telling me?'

Oh, shit! Her mom always could see straight through her. Oh, please let this be enough. "I'll get a tattoo on my upper arm," Buffy confessed.

"Absolutely not," Joyce stated resolutely and started walking again.

Buffy caught up to her quickly, and whined, "It's really small, you barely see it, in fact nobody probably will, it'll be underneath the sleeve. And it isn't some tattoo for the heck of it, it's this entire symbolic, historical, ritualistic thing with deep meaning. It isn't like I _/want/_ a tattoo."

Joyce stopped again and turned to her Buffy, and asked exasperated, "Then _/why/_ do you _/need/_ to become an Amazon?"

"Uh, well . . ." Buffy fidgeted, and after making sure nobody was close by explained, ". . . because if I don't, Lotion will try to kill me for the rest of my life, or hers whatever the case may be."

"WHAT?" Joyce screamed out loud in shock.

"Sh!" Buffy hissed. Then continued softly, "It's another stupid Amazon tradition; when a woman not of the tribe defeats you, give her the Kiss of Death and kill her."

Joyce sputtered, and then said grimly, "I will have a word with that Deo."

Buffy's hands started waving in panic, and she said, "No, don't. That won't help, she actually tossed her daughter the sword she could use to make Buffy-slices."

"What?" Joyce muttered again, this time panic and concern on her face.

"Didn't happen, I'm still intact," Buffy said quickly, trying to calm down her mother. "So, mom, I kinda have to. Please? Just chalk it up to the Slayer side of things, it won't actually influence my life, I don't have to go live in a hut in the desert tying up men or anything. I'll be an Amazon in name only."

Buffy watched her mother visibly make attempts to calm herself down; something she'd seen her mother do a lot more times since she found out her secret. Finally relaxed, but obviously concerned still for her daughter's well being, she sighed, "Okay, fine."

They started walking again and Joyce started rummaging in her purse, while saying, "Buffy, since we were late, and Everyday Woman closes early today, I want you to go there quickly and get the dress I reserved, while I go get the flyers for the opening and our food before they close."

"Everyday Woman?" Buffy wondered while Joyce pulled out a receipt, "why not just go to Mumus R Us?"

Joyce looked directly at Buffy, and said, "Don't insult your mother when she just gave into you, she might change her might."

"And then what?" Buffy half-challenged, partly because she wanted to protect her mother from herself, or rather her sense of fashion.

Joyce shrugged. "I'll just have to buy a sniper rifle, kill Deo and Lotion to protect you, go to jail, where you can visit me, and I'll be behind glass wearing a horrid, all-orange outfit that'll make a mumu look fashionable, and you'll have to go live with Giles, you're middle-aged watcher turned librarian," Joyce said with a sweet but hard smile, while Buffy's face gained a new depth of horror with every addition Joyce made. "He'll probably have lots of books lying around, possibly no tv."

"You wouldn't dare," Buffy said with absolutely horror.

Joyce inclined her head, and smirking told her daughter, "You wanna take that chance?"

"Uh," Buffy grumbled, snatching the receipt from her mother's hands, "I'm going already."

"That's my girl," her mother said with a grin and walked off toward the printers.

Annoyed Buffy walked toward the escalator and took the one going down. She casually looked around, bored. A couple, a girl in a short, blue dress and a guy in jeans, a blue shirt and a cowboy hat went up on the escalator next to hers. For a moment she thought how horrible their clothes looked and turned her head right, where there was a nice reflective surface . . . only showing the girl and the other shoppers, but not the cowboy. Buffy's eyes widened and then she turned her head left and up where the girl and the cowboy moved upward. She looked around, looking for a way, but didn't find anyone but the one she didn't want to take. She placed her hand on the middle rail, and jumped smoothly over it, and attempted to run up the stairs. Unfortunately there were other shoppers and she was forced to go up slowly, excusing herself constantly and asked to pass - the ceiling was two low for her to simply jump up.

Finally back at the second level she looked around, and found the cowboy and his date entering a room in the back. Buffy quickly veered slightly to the left in their direction, and ran after them. She entered through the same door and entered a barely lit room. She passed an arcade machine and found the room was full of them. There was giggling and slightly dirty suggestions, the first from a female voice, the latter from a male voice. A midsection blocked the view of them though, and so Buffy navigated around it. She found the girl bent over a pinball machine, with the guy behind her pushing against her and pawning her everywhere.

"You know it's illegal to that in public?" Buffy asked smartly, and the two of them looked up. She frowned and added, "I think it's illegal to that anyplace, actually."

"Get lost, little girl," the girl bit at Buffy, "go back to kindergarten."

"Yeah," the cowboy joked along, "come back when you're no longer under age - then again." He whispered something in the girl's ear which made her giggle, and Buffy - although not hearing it - roll her eyes.

"You know, you should really find out more about the guy's you decide to fuck, haven't notice he doesn't have body temperature?" Buffy wondered out loud, taking a step closer.

The vampire realized Buffy knew what he was and vamped out, his fangs close to the girl's neck but she still was oblivious to the danger. That was until the vamp's hands tightened around her arms, and said, "Well, well, go out for dinner, and you get dessert freely delivered."

Buffy looked incredulous at him, and said exasperated, "Can't you guys come with _/any/_ new material. Seriously, this is getting really old."

Meanwhile the girl had forced her head to look back, and looked into the demonic, yellow-eyes face and screamed out loud, trying to struggle. The cowboy focused on the struggling girl, and Buffy struck. With one smooth rapid movement she planted her foot in his face, and he staggered back on the impact. The girl screamed again, and ran off.

"Not even a thank-you," Buffy muttered as she placed herself in front of the cowboy vamp. "Everyone's ungrateful these days, no manners, you must be pissed about that as well."

The vamp snickered and licked his fangs. "Oh, well, I like eating just dessert anyway," he told Buffy.

Buffy rolled her eyes as he charged her. She ducked beneath his clumsy punch, which she most likely would have considered a decent one a few months ago, and slammed her fist powerfully into his stomach. The vamp doubled over with a painful groan, and the only reason he wasn't gasping for breathe, is because he didn't need any. With a rapid roundhouse kick Buffy sent the vamp flying till he crashed painfully into the wall. Buffy had already followed him over there. She pulled out her stake, and before the vamp had time to recover she rammed it home. The vampire looked shocked, and then he turned to dust.

"Slayer one - vampire zip," she said with satisfaction, slapping her hands. She smiled until she remembered. "Mom's mumu!" she said with a pained face and sped out the arcade hall.

She quickly ran down to the escalator, and ran down with everything she had - which wasn't much because once again she had to excuse herself and weave past the shoppers on the stairs. Reaching the bottom she turned to the right around back and ran. Behind the escalator there was a way right, and further onward. The 'Everyday Woman' sign was visible, and so Buffy sped up. Her eyes widened when she saw a guy start to close the grates in front of the shop from the inside. "NO, NO, WAIT!" she called, slamming against the grate, only ten centimeters from the floor. "Please let me in!"

"Sorry," the guy said muffled, smiling.

"Ah, come one!" Buffy pleaded pulling out the receipt. "I don't have to find anything, it's already waiting for me, not even paying for it, I got the receipt and everything! You just have to hand it over, _/pleaaaase/_." Buffy gave her best puppy-dog face, but eight hours of work made the guy immune.

The grate touched the floor with a resounding final thud, and he said, "Come back tomorrow."

"Oh," Buffy moaned her shoulders slumping, and then she let herself sink down to her knees, her hands sliding along the grate. "Mom's gonna kill me." Her eyes widened, and then she let herself sink further down, placing her head pitifully on the floor. "Slayer one - vampire one. This is _/soo/_ unfair!" She looked up at the ceiling at called, "Couldn't you give me a break this _/once/_?" She gave two sobs which were part fake, part real; exaggerating her emotions, and she dragged herself upright along the grate. She turned around and found a few kids and two grown ups looking at her theatrics. "Never seen a girl before?" she questioned them bitingly and they quickly moved on.

Pouting she started her long trek toward her execution, which she reached a few minutes later. Poutingly she stood next to the table, at which her mother was already sitting, having two plates of fast food on it. Joyce looked up, and noticed a certain something missing. "Where's the outfit?" Joyce asked sharply.

"Well, you see, it's like this," Buffy started thinking about how to make this look positive. "I was too late, but his much," Buffy said, bringing two fingers very close together. "Grate wasn't even fully closed."

"Buffy," Joyce said with disappointment, "can't you even pick up an outfit? You were distracted again weren't you? Was it a boy?"

"Kinda," Buffy said, letting herself drop into the seat across from her mother like a sack of potatoes.

"Buffy," Joyce said still sharply, but with a decidedly motherly-advice tone added to it, "boys may seem like they the entire world to you right now, but . . ."

"The dusty kind," Buffy interrupted with a pout. Joyce blinked at Buffy. "Saved a girl's life too," Buffy added softly, reflecting that her mother knowing the big secret was a good thing after all.

"Oh," Joyce said, not quite knowing what to say, both disappointed she didn't have the outfit yet, having to come back, and proud that her daughter had saved another life.

"But can she thank me, nooo," Buffy complained softly. "She just runs away screaming like a girl."

Joyce suddenly realized something, and was starting to think Buffy was making it up to get out of punishment and pointed, "But it's day out."

"Out, yeah, inside there's only artificial light, no sunlight," Buffy muttered, looking up at the many lamps and pointing at them. "Which can't be good for my complexion, or my eyes," she complained onward.

"I thought vampires slept during the day?" Joyce asked softly.

"When they're tired, I'm sure they try to do their sleeping during the day," Buffy muttered, slowly unfolding the paper wrapper around her hamburger. She halted for a moment, frowned and added, "Which I'm not even sure about if they even get tired. I should ask Giles."

"So I have to worry about the day as well?" Joyce asked not liking this at all.

"Yeah, definitely not invite any crouched, heavily cloaked people in during the day," Buffy said dejectedly and took a bit from her hamburger. Then she added still with a full mouth, "Of course, it could just be someone allergic to sunlight. Back in LA I thought I was so clever; house with drapes, almost killed a normal human with allergies." She swallowed, her well chewed bite. "Is he smoking though, definitely a vamp - no matter how allergic to sunlight, no human starts to smoke, certainly not with a heavy cloak," Buffy philosophized, then took another bite. "There's always the demons though, but most of them you'll notice from afar . . . unless they come out your toilet." Joyce looked horrified at her oblivious daughter, who swallowed again, and added, "Life sucks." Buffy blinked, and then put her hamburger down, "And to think that on the day I finally kicked that dumb Amazon's ass - somebody up there better start noticing Buffy Summers' file and realize they need to make some serious amends."

-----

A cowboy vampire searched through the mall well after closing time, having crashed through a window, triggering the alarm - not that any cops were coming at this hour. "Lyle?" the solid vampire called out. "Lyle!" he called again - he still didn't get any answers. He reached the arcade and searched through it, soon finding a pile of dust. He took it in for a moment, trying to think of a way for it not be what he thought it was. Him being not to bright, couldn't come up with anything else, and screamed, "LYLE! I will find who did this, and avenge you my brother!"

-----

Mr. Whitmore finished writing 'sex' on the blackboard, and underlined it thoroughly. He turned around, and looked around the classroom. "Sex. It's an important part of life, as well as a powerful drive in human behavior. With you teenagers with hormones raging through your bodies it is even more powerful. Who here hasn't wasted time with sex in one form or another when they could have been using it for something more valuable?"

"Yep, right here, uhuh," Xander said, raising his finger, remembering all the times multiple women were vying for his attention, as Lotion made similar vocal proclaims and raised her finger as well. Buffy, not too scholastically talented, looked from one to the other and raised her finger uncertainly.

"Ms. Summers, Ms. Lu, Mr. Harris, that was a rhetorical question," Mr. Whitmore said with a bit of a smile. Buffy rapidly withdrew her finger, as Xander and Lotion lowered theirs more casually, while the rest of the class laughed at them. Xander and Lotion didn't seem to mind, while Buffy blushed, ducking close. Next to her sat Willow who flashed her a smile. Buffy gave her a frown in return.

Mr. Whitmore walked around his desk and leaned his ass on it, and said, "Of course sex can have some serious consequences. Anyone here know one? Mr. Harris."

"When the other one is still in love with someone else, there's the real heart ache, let me tell. Horrendous disgusting pain, although the benefits are worth it," Xander said with a big grin, making everyone look at him in a completely different light than the laughter earlier. Buffy in the meantime ducked away slightly embarrassed, while sporting a secret proud grin.

"Uh, yes. Anyone else?" Mr. Whitmore asked. Lotion raised her hand rapidly. "Ms. Lu."

"When your future husband doesn't have the same morals as you, better kill your rivals before you announce to him and he can lay down the law, or else you're stuck with ugly girls, and man-hating bitches in between you and him," Lotion spoke sincerely, drawing glares from three girls, while Xander looked down in disbelief. The rest of the class laughed out loud at the perceived joke.

"Uhm, right," Mr. Whitmore said, shaking his head fighting not to join in the laughter. When the laughter died down Buffy's hand was up in the air. "Ms. Summers, you have something more along what I had in mind?"

Buffy nodded vigorously and with a gesture from the teacher she said, "Icky and deadly diseases. Don't leave the condoms at home!"

"Very good, Ms. Summers, that's a very good point," Mr. Whitmore said, and Buffy smiled happily at the compliment. Then shrank down and remembered she and Xander had _/not/_ used condoms. How the hell something that was good, felt so right, could be done so wrong and be so screwed up was still beyond her. "Anyone else know another one?" Cordelia and Willow raised their hands, and Mr. Whitmore pointed to Cordelia, "Ms. Chase."

"Getting knocked up," she stated bluntly, making students laugh.

"Ah, pregnancy, correct," Mr. Whitmore said with a raised voice so the laughter died down. He turned around and raised the lid of the square box of eggs. "And from pregnancy comes a child. Now to make you all acquainted with the burdens and responsibilities of having a child, I have brought these." Mr. Whitmore indicated the eggs, and continued, "For the next week these will be your children. You're expected to keep it intact, keep it clean, take time away to feed it, although you won't 'actually' be able to feed it. I wish I had the budget for the baby dolls with computer chips, instead you will have these." He pointed to his other side where a stack of notebooks lay. "You will have to keep a log of everything you did. So pair up, and come get your child and log."

The students came forward, Cordelia with Oz who had sat behind her. Willow quickly went to Xander, but he told her gently, "Sorry, Will. Several dates, being fair means someone else gets a chance, plus she asked earlier." Lotion stepped up next to Xander and smiled at Willow. Willow looked dejected, but accepted it. She watched Lotion and Xander walk forward in front of her and get their egg and notebook. More students paired of, and when she finally reached the front, only Buffy was left.

"Ah, congratulations, Ms. Rosenberg and Ms. Summers," Mr. Whitmore told the two and then looked over them to the class. "Our token Lesbian couple," he quipped and the class laughed while Buffy shrank down and grabbed an egg, while Willow got a notebook.

-----

"So, how's muff diving treating you girls," a joking remark called out.

Buffy grumbled in extreme annoyance as she sat down at the lunch table. Willow sat down next to her, while the others had already sat down, Cordelia and Oz included. Xander decided to stick up for his friends and called back to the guy, "Better than giving blowjobs for you, no doubt!" The joker got laughed at, much to his annoyance.

"I can't believe this," Buffy muttered in pain. "A lesbian couple, how did it come to this?"

"Hormones, dear," Willow supplied with a big grin, finding this might actually be more fun than playing mommy and daddy with Xander. Buffy looked over at her and then groaned.

"I'll be the laughing stock of the school. Worse, I can't be gay. I've already got enough people and demons trying to kill because I'm a tasty morsel as well as the Slayer, I don't need the average gay-bashing crowd to try as well," Buffy muttered out, and took in the egg she and Willow had wrapped in some paper tissues normally reserved for cleaning one's hands and mouth after eating.

"Say, Buffy, did we adopt or get artificial insemination?" Willow asked, patting a pen against her chin looking thoughtful at the notebook. "And if the latter, which one of us got it? Who's the father? Did we pick someone out of a book? What were our criteria? Or did we ask Xander to help?"

Xander blinked at the last part of Willow's babble. Buffy sighed, and then decided to plunge right in, and answered with a sneaky smile, "Xander, probably, and if so, why bother with the artificial. I'm sure Lotion was so kind to lend us- . . ." Xander spat out the water he was drinking at Buffy's suggestion and the images it generated in his mind, it sprayed, fell on him, and a moment later there was Lexa.

"Stop trying to steal my husband and father of my child," Lotion interrupted sharply, raising the egg in the air. She indicated it, and said, "Think about her, you immoral sluts."

"Or not," Buffy said chastised while Willow was blushing. Lexa was looking around briefly to see if anyone had noticed - if they did, they probably decided to forget it, because no one was screaming their lungs out.

She then picked up what Lotion had said. "Her?" Lexa questioned her 'wife'. "She's a she? You certain? I was kinda hoping for a son."

"Our second will be the son," Lotion told Lexa with a wide grin, making Lexa perk up. "And if you want, the third as well, or we could go back to a daughter." Lexa blinked at that later.

"Wow," Willow muttered looking at Lotion, "you're serious about the children, aren't you?"

Lotion nodded, "Why do you think I came for my husband? Very important to Amazons to provide the next strong generation for the tribe."

Buffy groaned and landed her head on the table right next to her child, making the egg shudder. "Look out, Buffy," Willow said a little concern, reaching for the egg to make sure it wouldn't break or roll.

"So what's the gender of our kid?" Cordelia asked Oz, then taking a bit from her sandwich.

"Male," he said without looking up from his lunch which he started to eat. "And we'll have five, all sons."

"Five?" Cordelia exclaimed in shock. "No way, one, and no more."

"Five, foot down, both in fact," Oz said, pointing at the feet on the ground.

"One," Cordelia returned with narrowed eyes, while the other four friends looked at the two with amusement.

"Five," Oz casually remarked, and continued chewing.

"One," Cordelia said, lowering her voice, and then took another bite.

Oz actually looked over at her, and then said, "Four."

"One."

"_/Four/_."

Cordelia rolled her eyes, and said, "Fine, two." Four pairs of eyes moved Oz.

"Three." Four pairs of eyes moved back to Cordelia while chewing food.

"_/Two/_," Cordelia returned tersely now.

"Two and a half," Oz said completely serious, apart from the tiny spark in his eyes.

Cordelia gave a grumble, and then said, "Okay, but if the third comes out intact, I'm chopping it in half. And you better make sure that band of yours makes some bucks, preferably big ones, because if you think I'm paying for all those diapers on my own, you've got another thing coming, buster - that other thing being: work."

As they had gotten to know Oz better over time, they had found he barely made an impression, so the expression of horror was only more poignant and funny when it filtered on his face. The others sniffled, and even Cordelia smiled at it. Oz nodded, and said, "Don't worry. The Dingoes will make it big."

"And you better be still with them when they do," Cordelia replied with sparkling eyes. Oz grinned a bit - he loved cheering Cordelia up, and nothing seemed to cheer her up more than a good verbal spar.

"Okay, now we've witnessed that disturbing exchange," Buffy said, having images in her mind of Cordelia with a meat cleaver going for her baby. She turned to Willow and saw in her wide eyes she had the same idea. Buffy wondered if there was something wrong with them if they considered Cordelia actually carrying out her threat, or if it was Cordelia's sparkling personality that was the problem. "Will, do we have a daughter or a son?"

"Hmm," Willow thought about that for just a moment, and replied, "A daughter would be fun, but a boy being raised by two women - it'd be a nice experiment."

"Okay, a boy it is," Buffy said with a little smirk, checking out the egg, and giving a light shake of her head at the ridiculousness of the banter as well as how close to home it was. "His name is Alex."

Willow nodded vigorously, and wondered, "I wonder if the curse carries on through sperm. Perhaps Alex is Alexandra as well."

"We should get some water and test it out," Buffy returned with a grin.

Lotion glared at Willow and Buffy, "Which part of 'don't try to steal my husband', didn't you get?" Lexa shook her head, snickering.

Willow backed her body back as far as he could and said, "Artificial insemination, shees."

"Which one of you carried him then?" Cordelia asked rolling her eyes.

"I did," Buffy answered immediately with a proud grin, while Willow looked at her oddly. "Slayer strength, that way Willow doesn't have to suffer an aching back."

"Noble," Oz commented calmly.

Willow didn't agree though, and she said indignant, "Who says I don't want to suffer an aching back if it means carrying Xander's child?" Lexa choked on her food, and coughingly tried to wash it away with the water in her bottle. As Lotion patted her back, Willow continued, "Besides, I could always do a levitation spell, and problem solved."

"But Willow-" Buffy tried.

"Uh, uh!" Willow said, raising a finger. "I'm the one who carries Xander's child and no buts."

When Buffy's protest whimpered away, Cordelia said with a grin, "Well, we know who's wearing the pants in that relationship." Buffy glared at Cordelia.

"You can have the second one, sweety," Willow placated Buffy with a pat on her head. "Ouch," she said as Lotion's fist hit her gently in that sensitive spot on her upper hand.

"I warned you," Lotion said with a glare.

"Hey," Lexa said with a bit annoyance, "I'm the one who beat you up and now you have to marry me, remember? I married you, got ourselves a lovely daughter, and so I'm faithful, but as far artificial insemination goes, only I decide where and how often my sperm does or does not go. And I'll always be there for my two lesbian best friends."

"Sorry," Lotion whispered, while Buffy groaned, and Cordelia snickered.

The Slayer muttered, "I'm doomed."

"That's a safe bet in this highschool," Oz said approvingly and cool, making Buffy glare at him, and Cordelia snicker a little louder.

"Lexa! I didn't know you were here!" a male voice came from behind the buxom brunette.

Lexa groaned, "Nooo, not again."

Deke Fisher arrived next to her, with big loving eyes. "I have not yet given up, my love. I ghag . . ."

Lexa had gotten up and wrapped her hand around his throat, "Which part of 'no' didn't you get huh? The 'n', or the 'o'? _/What/_ does it take to get you off my back?"

"Lexa," Willow called warningly.

Lexa grumbled and eased his hand, allowing the quarter back to speak. "But why not give me a chance? Just one? One date?" Deke whimpered out, his ego quite a bit deflated by the continuing rejections - painful rejections. "It isn't like I'm that Japanese pervert who just grabs your boobs?"

Lexa grinned evilly suddenly, and said, "Do you want to know? Do you _/really/_ want to know?"

"Uhm, yes?" Deke said, uncertain.

"Okay, I'll show you," Lexa said, and started walking. "Come one," she said and her friends looked with confusion. After a step Lexa stopped, and turned around to Lotion, "Got our daughter?" Lotion held the egg up and then put away safely. Lexa nodded, and continued, dragging Deke along.

The five remaining friends looked at each other for a moment, and then got up. "Lexa," Willow called concerned as they followed Lexa and the nervous quarterback. "What are you doing?"

-----

The hike had turned into a dead run, and took some ten minutes. Deke was huffing and puffing, while Lexa was just breathing a little heavier than normal. A bit behind them were the others, who apart from Buffy and Lotion were just as much huffing and puffing as Deke. Deke vowed he would have to up his endurance training if three girls could outrun him and stay so well. They had arrived in front of Xander's old house - his parents' house, now his mother's house, an old, run-down, dirty, ringy-ding of a house.

"Now I'll tell ya," Lexa hissed out, then continued in a more normal tone, "you're grades are bad, and despite how good you think you are, the football team isn't winning, and there've been no scouts, which means no football scholarship - you're not going to college, at _/all/_. Which means, that'll be your house." Lexa pointed at her parents' house and Deke looked at it with wonder. "To be precise, you'll be _/renting/_ the house. Whatever job you'll be landing is going to be pathetic, you'll be drunk half the time, and watching tv all day like the lazy sack of potatoes you'll be, while beating up your wife and kid every chance you get. Someday that kid will turn you in to the cops, and you'll rot the rest of your life in jail. Welcome to your future, and I will _/not/_ be your future battered wife. Get it?"

Deke's face was stuck in wonder, and then slowly turned sad, before he whimpered out, "But-but I don't wanna be a drunkard, lazy pig, and I don't wanna abuse anyone." Tear stained his face by now.

Lexa rolled her eyes, and said, "Too bad, time to accept it . . . And stop crying. Take it like a man, damn it!" Lexa then kicked him in the stomach, doubling him over as he flew backward till he crashed against the fence of the garden of the house behind him. There he stayed sitting. Lexa nodded satisfactorily and walked the way he came. His friends looked in wonder at the crying, defeated Deke, and then turned around catching up to Lexa.

"Wasn't that a little too harsh?" Willow asked, still queasy at the crying Deke.

"No," Lexa growled.

-----

Willow and Buffy entered Buffy's home, grinning about something or other. They walked inside and looked left into the living room. There sat a dejected Pike, who looked up. Willow carefully kept the egg in her hands, as she looked at the still bruised guy. "Hi, Pike," Buffy greeted a little nervously, not quite knowing how to deal with her ex and his crush on the annoying Amazon.

"Oh, hi," Willow said, even more nervously. Willow had gathered her confidence since Lexa whirled in their lives, but if Buffy didn't quite know how to handle the, in her opinion, pathetic guy, how could she.

"Hi. I can't believe I still couldn't beat her, I worked so hard," Pike told the two girls.

Buffy rolled her eyes, her nervousness forgotten, and said, "Oh, grow up. She's been training since she was a kid, she's stronger than a standard Slayer. Now matter how hard you worked, you'll never bridge the gap in strength within a few months."

Pike nodded, and then suddenly got up with an enlightened face. "Yes!" he said with revelation, and the two girls looked at him with some hope. "I'll have to beat her on skill then!" he yelled, making Buffy and Willow's jaw drop. "Must find a new, extremely skilled sensei!" Pike spoke and then burst toward the door, bumping into Willow on the way, making her lose the egg.

"Wah!" Willow exclaimed as the egg started sailing over her back as Pike sped past her. Buffy's eyes went wide, and Slayer reflexes kicked in. She jumped, and caught the egg just before it could hit the floor - instead she crashed to the floor, lying on her side, looking at the egg as if mentally willing it not to break. "Oh, thank god," Willow said with relief as the front door slammed close again. "I'm going to turn him into a toad for almost killing Xander's son!"

"Will, it's an egg," Buffy interrupted her angry friend dryly. Willow turned and looked down at Buffy, who slowly got up. "I know the little speculation was nice and all, and funny, and it's important for our grades - but it's still just an egg."

"But, it's this whole symbolic thing," Willow countered, as outside the motorcycle roared and rode off.

"It's an egg," Buffy repeated pointedly, aiming a finger at the white egg in her left hand.

"Okay, fine, it's an egg," Willow relented. "So, we going up to your room to discuss how to raise our son?"

"Yep," Buffy said with a grin and the two friends went upstairs.

-----

Lexa and Lotion stepped into his apartment, and she placed 'their child' on the kitchen counter. Lexa joined her there, but first got some warm water to turn back into Xander.

"So," Xander said, pulling out the notebook, "father's back. I suppose we should decide on how to raise our daughter." He wrote down his and Lotion's names as father and mother first.

"We're not going to cuddle her. Amazons believe in letting children learn through experience, including pain and failure," Lotion explained with a grin. "Not like I read about these people that just give their child every bit it wants, and take them to a doctor for a tine scratch."

"Yeah, me too. Train her, and our sons afterwards too, of course, in the ways of martial arts the moment they can walk, make them grow strong and capable, but not forgetting to play time either of course," Xander philosophized.

"Sons? Sons bad at training, we learned to leave them be when it comes to fighting," Lotion said with a little hint of sadness.

Xander snorted, and said, "Amazon sons perhaps. No, my sons won't be like that, they'll be strong and powerful like I am, even if I have to train them myself in the midst of all-hail-women country."

Lotion's eyes sparkled, and said, "You promise? There hasn't been a strong male in centuries."

Xander nodded, grinning, and said, "We most not forget to teach them a sense of responsibility though."

"We boil the egg," Lotion said a grin. "Toughens our daughter up but good, perfectly shows what we mean with the words."

"I was thinking the exact same thing," Xander said with a grin, scribbling what they were going to do, and the reasoning for it in the notebook. "It also makes it much more difficult to break." Lotion grinned evilly as she nodded, and Xander pulled a pan from a cupboard in the counter. He filled it with water, and placed it on the stove. Then put the egg and turned on the fire. Looking at it with a satisfied grin for a moment, he put the lid on, and turned back to Lotion. She sat on a stool and stood right across from her. "Okay, we should split the responsibilities. You take her one day, and I the next?"

"Sounds good," Lotion answered smiling, and was surprised to find his lips against hers. It was a quick kiss, and he broke it off again, she looked questioningly at him.

"You look sexy as a mother," Xander said with a smile and a shrug, wondering how he could ever make a choice if it had to go between just Lotion on Willow. If Buffy was in the running the choice was easy, but . . . Willow was amazing, Lotion was amazing. Willow was his bestest friend since forever, Lotion was this fiery, crackling, gung-ho girl that definitely intrigued him, while Willow this strong, powerful, responsible girl, but had learned to loosen up and enjoy the ride. They were like Buffy split in two, really, he reflected with a little bit of surprise.

Lotion placed a passionate kiss of her own on his lips, and then opened her eyes, looking into his. "I wish you had already chosen, and that you chose me," she told him smokily.

"Yeah, well," Xander said and backed away a bit. Buffy considered him her 'boyfriend' now - problem she considered that bastard Angel her 'boyfriend' as well. She knew he expected a clear choice - he wasn't going to share her with Angel, either all of her, or nothing at all. How the hell did his life get this complicated? Oh, yeah, daddy sold him to the Chinese mob - then again, he wouldn't have it any other way. It was just too amazing what had happened since that fateful day; he'd take the curse with the blessing. "Wanna stay for dinner? I'm a mean cook."

"Sure," Lotion answered with a smile.

"Don't need to call your mom for permission?" Xander asked.

Lotion said, "Nope, but I'll leave her message where I am later, I just want to kiss you till her daughter as toughened up." She leaned forward.

-----

"So did you ask you're mom, yet?" Buffy asked Willow, sitting next to the witch on her bed. "About becoming an Amazon, I mean."

Willow nodded, and said, "More like somewhere in between of informing and asking, really."

"And?" Buffy said hopefully, not wanting to sit there without her best friend - even if she was there to ogle naked girls.

"I quote: 'That's nice, dear, have fun,'" Willow answered bitterly.

"You're mom is so cool," Buffy replied with a shy.

"'Cool?'" Willow echoed, looking at Buffy like she was crazy. "_/Your/_ mom is cool, let's you be yourself and supports you, but still shows she loves you, lays down boundaries. My mom just doesn't care what I do as long as I don't make her look bad."

"Oh, sorry," Buffy replied and an uncomfortable silence grew, Buffy not quite known what to say or do at that.

Willow spoke up, then, "You know, I don't care what Lotion says. Xander did it for real with one of us, he just didn't tell her."

Buffy laughed. "You're right, Will. He'd keep it a secret, and not even consider it cheating, because he would consider it an honorable duty to help out us poor lesbians!" Buffy said loudly, and the two went into a giggle fit.

"Lesbians?" a female voice filled with several strong emotions questioned, the biggest one being confusion. The door to the room opened, and in peaked Joyce.

"Oh, hi, mom," Buffy managed to sputter out amongst giggles as Willow just snickered. Buffy picked 'their son' from the nightstand to her right, and held it up. She forced her laughter under control, and said, "There weren't enough guys, so we're a parent couple - a gay one. Meet our son Alex."

"Oh," Joyce said and a small smile.

"He's Xander's," Willow cut in with a grin. "Artificially inseminated . . . _/officially/_."

Joyce smiled broader, then snickered at their ridiculous game of speculation, remembering good times like that when she was a teen. Joyce was glad, happy, that her daughter seemed to be able to do some normal things after all, and not just slay vampires. Buffy then said, "We haven't decided in which one of us he grew though."

"Me of course, if it isn't artificial," Willow said without thought, the most natural thing in the world.

"Why?" Buffy asked wryly, and with a little suspicion and anger.

"Well, because . . ." Willow started with an obvious tone, just about to say how Xander wouldn't consider it fair, and Buffy would consider it too cruel if she got Xander twice and Willow not once. She caught herself just in time, realizing that Buffy's mom probably wouldn't know about Buffy no longer being a virgin - and she really didn't want to see Xander headless, she heard Joyce wielded a mean axe. All her considerable brain power focused instantly on a solution. ". . . X-xander and you wouldn't consider it fair if you got him f-first - while I was pining away for him all this time."

"Oohkay," Joyce said backing away toward the door, "time to get out of here before I give in to the urge to lock Buffy in her room till she's thirty."

"Mom," Buffy said with the patented tone of teenagers all over the world when embarrassed with their parents. Joyce turned around and was about to leave with a smile on her face, when Buffy called out, "Mom!" Joyce stopped and turned partially back. "Uh, could Willow sleep over for the rest of the week?" Buffy asked timidly and sweetly, using the patented tone of teenagers all over the world when wanting something from their parents they thought would have difficulty getting - only to have a whole verbal assault ready and waiting because after all didn't they ask nicely?

"Why?" Joyce asked surprised, as surprised as Willow looked.

"Well, us lesbians can't get accidentally pregnant you know, lot's of planning," Buffy explained, while Joyce frowned. Buffy hurried along, "So it's very unlikely we'd be living in different houses across town - if this experiment is supposed to simulate having a baby, she should be here with me, shouldn't see?"

Joyce pondered the question, and then nodded, "Okay, but only if Willow's parents agree."

Suddenly giddy at the unexpected prospect, Willow spoke up, "Shouldn't be a problem getting their permission, they're not exactly Mr. and Mrs. Involved."

Joyce frowned and then nodded, any last doubts she may have head evaporating immediately, and said, "You can call them downstairs, then tell me." Willow nodded with a grin and got off the bed.

-----

"Hmm," Lotion muttered chewing the steak in mushroom sauce he had made. Xander smiled and took a bite of his own food, and nodded approvingly. They were sitting across from each other at the low living room table, while Lotion held the egg to her left breast with her left hand. "You're amazing in the kitchen," she muttered with a mouth full of food. Xander grinned, and watched Lotion take the egg away from her breasts. "Done," Lotion said with a smirk.

Xander put a new piece of meat in his mouth. After placing the fork on his plate, he picked up a pen and wrote down in the notebook while saying what he wrote, "Eighteen oh-three, mother starts breast-feeding daughter." He continued writing and speaking, "Eighteen oh-seven, mother burps daughter."

"My daughters don't burp," Lotion said perkily. Xander looked up at her with an incredulous look. "Oh, all right," Lotion said, realizing the falsehood of that statement, and tapped twice with her finger on the back of the egg - the front of which now had a face drawn on it. "There, burped."

Xander grinned, and said, "We're going to make great parents someday."

"I can't wait," Lotion told him with a seductive look.

"Not necessarily with each other, you know," Xander answered her.

Lotion shrugged and told him, "We seem to be making a great team in that regard." Xander quickly stuffed his mouth with some potatoes.

-----

The bell rang, and Buffy opened the door. "Hi, Cordelia," Buffy greeted with a smile.

"Hurry back, honey," the overly sweet voice of Willow came from the living room, making Buffy and another woman unseen by Cordelia snicker - most likely Buffy's mother she figured. "Our son needs both his mothers."

"I will, hon, don't worry," Buffy called back with a large grin, and Cordelia rolled her eyes. After Buffy closed the door behind her, she asked, "So, where did you leave your son?" Buffy was in a comfortable jeans and shirt, and finished putting on her black jacket.

Cordelia in contrast was in a tight outfit, a zipper pulled down low enough to show her cleavage. The pants and long-sleeved top were apart, and were made of some substance Buffy had lost the name of. It was something that was a lot like rubber, protective biker suits, but flexible, and much thinner so Cordelia could easily move in it. Cordelia had dubbed it her 'Slayer suit', or 'Slayer fashion'. As she had said, 'Comfortable, fashionable, practical, and still sexy enough to distract any evil guy and lesbian-inclined evil girls.'

As Cordelia turned around and went to walk next to Buffy, she replied, "With my husband, and do you realize how tacky this whole thing is?"

Buffy nodded, having caught herself thinking and saying some icky or at least tacky things during the whole parenthood ordeal. Of course, it was quite a lot of fun, and she answered the cheerleader, "Yeah, but a good kind of tacky."

"Ugh," Cordelia muttered in reply, and then looked up. "Perhaps I should hire a nanny," Cordelia said, while Buffy shook her head. "What? It's done in real life," Cordelia returned, and took in Buffy who looked up at her as they walked down the pavement. "Hmm."

"No, I'm not going to be your nanny," Buffy returned half-annoyed, the other half still amused and happy.

Cordelia replied, "You could use the money." Buffy whipped her head back and glared at the cheerleader. "Okay," Cordelia told her, raising her hands in an I'm-backing-off gesture.

-----

The two girls were in the graveyard. They had been walking along and spotted a vampire off in the bushes. Cordelia had claimed him, and was ready to take off. "I'll keep an eye on you," Buffy said with a grin.

"Oh, please, it's just one vamp without swords to defend himself with," she said as she drew two swords from the sheaths on her back. "You better keep an eye on yourself." Then she was off.

"Just in case he gets lucky," Buffy called softly after her, and indeed kept peering through the bushes. That was, until she turned to her right to check out a presence. "Oh, Angel," she said, a smile on her face as the souled vampire entered the cemetery from the forest there.

"Ah, hey," he said with a smile, the long black duster looked good on him.

"You're not scheduled for patrol tonight," Buffy said with a mock disapproving tone as she walked up to him.

Angel shrugged, and said, "The schedule doesn't say I can't come out and dust some vampires anyway."

"True," Buffy grinned and then wrapped her arms around his neck, before entering in a passionate kiss with Angel, which lasted . . . and lasted . . .

"There, that's one more dusty- . . . oh, for crying out loud," Cordelia said, first with happiness then annoyance as she returned and found the Slayer in her vampire's arms. Annoyed she moved over to a gravestone and leaned on it, waiting. After a minute, she got back up, and said, greatly annoyed with her fists in her sides, "Hey, don't you think we she could get back to patrolling and leave the hormones behind for a bit?" Buffy and Angel continued kissing. "HELLO!" Cordelia said loudly, finally breaking the two apart, "Evil is afoot, likes to kill people, draining them of their blood, go dust when you kill them, which is our job?"

"Right, yes," Angel said a bit chastised and looked down at the smiling Slayer in his arms, "We should get back to patrolling."

"Okay," Buffy said, and started kissing Angel again.

Cordelia rolled her eyes with annoyance, and said, "Hey, horndogs, get a room _/after/_ patrol, will ya?"

Buffy broke apart from Angel for a moment, and told her, "If Oz were here, you'd do the same." Then she went back to kissing.

Cordelia grumbled, and then hissed out, "Yeah, guess why Giles decided _/not/_ to team me with him, _/not/_ to team you with Angel or with Xander, _/not/_ to team Xander with either Willow or Lotion either, but team him with Oz? Perhaps so we _/wouldn't/_ be doing nothing but making out and letting people die because we failed to dust vamps?"

Angel broke apart, and then forced himself away from Buffy with a lot of willpower, and said, "She has a point, Buffy. We better continue patrolling."

"Okay, fine," Buffy said with a smirk and started walking. Angel walked next to her, and the two were looking at each other as they walked.

Cordelia rolled her eyes in annoyance and caught up with hem, and said, "I see that me without enhanced vision is going to have to spot the vampires . . . hormonal dumbasses."

-----

The three of the had reached the next cemetery, much to Cordelia's annoyance. The fact that Angel was still around and the damn star-crossed lovers were still looking into each other's eyes was annoying. And who would want to look in his pale face anyway? Didn't she ever see him by day? She must have, inside of a house, with him in the shadows. Ugh. She supposed is was good luck Xander had two, and when she was still after him three, other girls after him - all the time - or he and Buffy would be just as bad as Buffy and Angel were now.

Cordelia saw a vampire come up behind some tombstones, dusting herself off from sand. "A newby," Cordelia said, and looked at Angel and Buffy.

Buffy's eyes flickered over to Cordelia, and she said, "You want him?"

"Her, it's a _/her/_, oh, fuck it," she said with exasperation and drew her swords then ran at the newby vampiress.

The new vampire grinned as she saw three tasty meals . . . that was until she noticed one of the meals drawing two large, very-sharp-looking swords, as well as a murderous look on her face. Deciding this place had gone nuts, she turned around and ran for the forest at the end of the cemetery. "Don't you dare flee!" she heard the meal that apparently liked to bite call behind her, and she decided to run as fast as she could.

"Damn you, bitch!" Cordelia screamed and ran after the fleeing vamp with everything she had. This sucked, this seriously sucked. She was sprinting and the vamp was getting away anyway. With all her new martial arts skill and strength, as well as these nifty razor sharp blades Giles had given her, she could take on a vamp quite easily - despite their superior strength and speed, they were clumsy and more importantly, usually dumb - dumber than the humans that inhabited the body before a demon took it over. Simply fleeing though, the superior speed was too great an advantage - didn't take any skill or intelligence to run after all. "Shit," Cordelia hissed as she entered the forest, and saw the vamp pull away from her. She was starting to get tired, and she told herself, "Gotta train my speed." She then pulled her right arm back and hurled one of her swords forward like a spear.

The sword swished through the air with great speed, and a few moments later her aim was true. The sword imbedded the vampire straight through her chest, and yelling in pain she sank to the grounds.

Off to the right of the event a cowboy vampire by the name of Tector Gorch saw the event, and he looked with rather surprised eyes how the mortal didn't slow down one bit, then severed the female vamp's head a moment later as she was trying to get back up. The vamp dusted, leaving a sword which the brunette picked up. "Slayer," Tector whispered his conclusion. "You killed my brother!" he then roared and stormed forward, closing the distance quickly. Only five meters away he made a quick draw to his century old Smith & Wesson revolver, and fired.

-----

The sound of the gun being fired jerked Buffy and Angel out of each other's dreamy vision instantly. "Oh, my god, Cordelia!" Buffy said shocked, and then surged forward. Then more gunshots rang out.

"AAAH!" Cordelia's distanced scream came, making Buffy falter for just a moment with both relief and terror, then ran onward. "You stupid super hero slut! One of them is _/shooting/_ at me! Come do your job!" once again sounded off in the distance.

With fear gripping Buffy's heart she sped onward, easily outrunning Angel. She surged through the growth, and quickly came across a vamp wearing a cowboy hat and shooting a cowboy gun. Cordelia was hiding behind a tree, but quickly moved to hide behind another one as the cowboy vamp came closer. Wasting no time, Buffy grabbed a stake and flung it with all her might, and all her supernatural aim. The stack twisted through the air, and a moment later slammed in the demon's back, who jerked and started to sink through his knees. The hat left his head, just before the body turned to dust. The gun landed on the ground, and the hat neatly floated down to cover the ashes.

"Cordelia, are you alright?" Buffy called out loud.

The cheerleader peaked from behind a tree, seeing Angel come up behind Buffy, and then emerged. She took in the shot-up side of the tree she had been hiding behind before the latest one, and then walked over to Buffy and Angel, sheathing her swords, and hissing, "You two go back to lovy-dovy or kissing, and I swear I'll hack of his head, right after I see if hacking off his other head and what's it attached to is enough to stop you two."

Angel took a step back for security reasons, gulping at Cordelia's pissed expression. "You wouldn't," Buffy blanched, making Cordelia growl.

Buffy swallowed and decided to change the subject, and took in the remaining hat. "Shees, what is it with the cowboy theme and vampires these days? I dusted another one dressed like that yesterday," Buffy pondered, and suddenly her face turned to horror. "I didn't miss some new fashion trend, did I? Please don't tell me vampires are more trendy than I am," Buffy whimpered. The concept that she, Buffy Summers, once queen of Hemery High, and trend setter for all seasons didn't know a new fashion trend, but some corpses did, was too horrible to contemplate.

"No," Cordelia said with a huff, "do you see _/me/_ wearing cowgirl clothes and hat? The cowboy look is still just as out as a century ago, except in Texas. They were probably real cowboys, this one was shouting about me killing his brother." Buffy sighed with relief, much to Angel's silent amusement. Cordelia squatted down and picked up the gun. She stood back up examining it, holding the gun the way it was meant to be held, and said, "Yep, judging from this, real cowboys turned vamps."

The gun went off, making Cordelia jump, Buffy scream, and Angel yell out with pain. "Aagh!" Cordelia yelped tossing the gun away.

"You shot me!" Angel groaned out, staggering back holding his side, then fell to his ass. "Argh!"

"You shot Angel!" Buffy yelled in fright and sank next to him, pulling his coat aside and ripping apart his shirt.

With more painful groans from Angel, Cordelia said, "Well, sorry, who knew the damn trigger was that sensitive? Ever tried pulling the trigger on a toy cap gun? Besides, he's a vamp, he'll live and he deserves it for almost getting me shot up." Buffy looked up at Cordelia with a scowl, but the cheerleader just shrugged, and said, "What?" Buffy turned back to a newly groaning Angel, a guilty look on her face. "And you quit being a crybaby, you're a vamp, a bullet shouldn't bother you," Cordelia spoke then grabbed him by the shoulder and forced him to his legs.

"Ow, owowowow, OW!" Angel yelled as he was forced along, getting to his feet. Buffy quickly got to him and support his staggering form. Buffy looked with concern at the blood staining Angel's blue blouse and his duster. "It'll heal, Buffy" Angel gasped out. "Just hurts a little. OUCH!"

"A little?" Buffy asked him with a raised eyebrow.

-----

Xander entered the school library, the egg in the pocket of his sleeveless shirt. He found he was the last one in at the quick early morning briefing. "So," he said walking up to the table having everyone present, "anything new on the big bad front? No one trying to end the world?"

"Nope," Cordelia said with a smirk, "but an old bad has been aching good." Buffy glared at her.

"What?" Lotion asked, from her sitting position.

Xander pulled up a stair as Cordelia explained, "Some crazy cowboy vampire tried to shoot me. Buffy dusted him, I picked up his gun and accidentally shot Angel."

Xander snickered as Giles, as usual reading a book, said from the second level, "He was not part of the schedule."

"He decided to lend a helping hand anyway," Buffy defended her second boyfriend.

"And got shot for it," Xander said with a big grin, "I like it, I _/really/_ do. The Hellmouth punishes immediately."

"How's the babies?" Willow butted in perkily, to take the whole group off that self-destructive path.

"Oz is a good baby sitter, he has potential," Cordelia supplied with a grin. Oz gave a stoic nod. Then she pulled the egg from her stylish back pack, and put the egg, dressed in a stylish doll pants and doll top on the table. "See," she said, and everyone looked surprised at the dressed egg. "What?" Cordelia asked at their surprised faces. "You didn't think I was going to let my kid wear something unfashionable, or heaven forbid go naked, did you?" Giles gave a barely audible, long-suffering sigh at the antics of his charges, and disappeared back into the stacks of books.

Sheepishly Willow pulled her naked egg from a pocket in her perky, low cut blouse, and said, "Alex is doing fine."

Xander pulled out his naked egg, and showed it to everyone saying, "Conda is great as well."

Cordelia rolled her eyes, and said, "Of course, just when you thought the challenged dress-sense was healed, they bring their kids along naked."

"Oh, please, that's a real stretch, Cor," Xander told his erstwhile nemesis with a grin.

"Conda?" Willow prompted.

Lotion spoke up with a smile, "Ancient and respected Amazon female name."

Buffy blinked and then muttered, "Lotion and Conditioner, mother and daughter."

"That's not funny," Lotion bit back and narrowed her eyes at Buffy.

Buffy blinked, and noticed Lotion _/really/_ didn't like it, and said, "Sorry." Buffy put her feet on the table, leaning her chair back with a grin. The bounce made Xander's 'daughter' start to roll. "Oops," Buffy said, as the egg reached her, and she quickly grabbed it before it could fall to the floor. Buffy smiled ready to give it back to Xander and then frowned, felt the egg. "How come your egg feels weird?" Buffy asked testing it.

"It feels weird?" Lotion asked concerned and Xander took the egg back.

He tested it, and said, "Nothing weird, why?" Lotion relaxed again.

"It feels different from our egg," Buffy said wit a frown.

Xander grinned and said, "Boys and girls usually feel different, Buffy. It thought you knew that by now."

"Oh, very funny," Buffy said, trying to scowl and look angry but failing miserably.

Cordelia snatched the egg, and her eyes widened. She looked at Xander and asked sternly, "You _/boiled/_ your egg?"

"Yeah," Xander answered with a grin, snatching the egg back, making Oz raise his eyebrows and take in his own son.

"YOU BOILED YOUR EGG?" Buffy and Willow exclaimed as one, sitting up straight in one movement - except not quite. Buffy's eyes widened when her half tipped over chair wouldn't would go smoothly back, and balanced and then fell over backward. "OW!" she said as she tumbled over the floor. "Ouch, oof, that hurt."

From the stacks Giles voice sounded calmly, "Do be careful with the furniture and the floor, Buffy. It doesn't have Slayer healing."

The rest snickered at that, but Buffy quickly got up and glared at Xander, "You boiled your egg! You boiled your daughter!"

"I boiled an egg which is standing in for my daughter," Xander answered with a huge grin.

Willow in the meantime was shocked at Lotion's lack of reaction, "Why aren't you saying anything? Xander just boiled your daughter."

"And I helped him with it," Lotion answered him calmly.

"WHAT?" Willow yelled in shock. "How can you do that to your daughter?"

"It's called rather crudely, 'tough love'," Lotion answered with a grin.

"Yep, you see we raise our daughter to be tough, we teach her martial arts, train her body, learn her responsibility early on, let her fall so she can learn how not to, and how to handle when she does, we won't cuddle her, and hug her, and walk after her with a pillow just in case she falls," Xander explained with a proud grin, drawing two dropped jaws to him, "Perfectly shown off by hard boiling the egg - it also makes it more difficult to break." He casually tossed the egg over to Lotion who caught it, and placed it in a pocket in her long, form hugging Amazon dress.

"But that's cheating! You're cheating!" Cordelia exclaimed with an indignant tone.

Giles had returned at his position overlooking his charges at the commotion, and said, "Actually, it's an ingenious albeit devious way to go about getting to the goal - especially with that reasoning by it."

"Well!" Cordelia said indignant, standing up, as Xander and Lotion basked in Giles' comment. Oz rose with his girlfriend, "We'll see who has the last laugh when Mr. Whitmore fails you."

Horrified, Buffy took her son from Willow and cradled it protectively away from Xander and Lotion on the other side. "I could never do that to our son," she said with some distrust to her friends.

Lotion nodded and said with satisfaction, "That's why by the time they can walk, our daughter will kick your son's ass in everything."

Willow got up as did Buffy and gave Xander and Lotion a superior glare, then left to join Cordelia and Oz to go to class. Xander laughed, and then told Lotion, "Did you see their faces? I can't believe they're so upset about an egg!"

"I can," Lotion returned with a grin, "they're upset they didn't think of it themselves."

Xander snickered and got up, "Let's get to class."

-----

The school day was over, and so the six members presently making up the Scooby Gang were walking out of the building. "So, I gotta go buy fertilizer," Xander started, and pulled out his and Lotion's egg. "Do you want to take care of her, Lotion, or do you think she'd like a shopping trip with her dad?"

"I'll take care of her," Lotion said quickly and took the egg from him.

"Fertilizer?" Willow asked with a confused face.

"Yeah," Xander said with a smile. "The plants on the balcony for shade need a bit more than just water and a change of soil now and then, it seems. They're withering away, need to go to a speciality store, and get some advice from an expert along with the right products."

Lotion seemed distasteful, and so Buffy decided to make use of the opportunity, and said, "I'll go with you, Xan, if you don't mind a side trip to the mall. Mom needs me to pick up some new clothes for her still, and I can help with plants if you need me too."

"That'd be great," Xander said with a grin, as he turned right at as they reached the street. Buffy went with him, while the others had to go left. "See you later," Xander greeted. The Scoobies returned the greet, apart from Cordelia, and Oz who gave a characteristic grunt that meant the same thing.

A bit later Xander and Buffy walked along. "So what do you think of my feminine wiles to get me alone with you?" Buffy asked innocently.

Xander looked down at Buffy and said a dumbfounded tone, "I had to go to a store and you offered to go with."

Buffy smirked at him, and said while batting her eyelashes, "Sometimes feminine wiles come in the form of taking the right opportunity."

Xander rolled his eyes, and said, "Those are the wiles of an economic. The dancing you did when that halfwit serenaded me and half the guys wanted to jump you, _/those/_ were feminine wiles. And I know the difference, I got feminine wiles these days, you know."

Buffy chuckled and went in front of him, placing her arms around his waist and looking up. "After everything you heard Cordelia say about me and Angel, I figured you need a little reassuring you aren't of the picture yet." She moved one hand from his waist, and used it to pull him down and placed a scorching kiss on his lips, tongue slipping inside moments later. A few moments later Buffy broke the kiss, and she asked to Xander who still had his eyes closed, "Reassured?"

"Very," Xander sighed opening his eyes, "I would be much more reassured if you dumped _/him/_ though."

"Yeah, well . . ." Buffy sighed, turning around and starting walking again. Xander joined her, and she continued, "I can't turn off my heart."

"I'm not asking you to, just the parts were _/he/_ resides. I'm willing to operate," Xander offered with a grin.

Buffy smiled back at him, and said, "You'll just have to live with it, Xan. Till I make a choice I have _/two/_ boyfriends. Just be grateful I don't demand you stop seeing the other two . . . that is, _/if/_ I make a choice." Buffy turned to look straight forward again, and added, "More and more I'm thinking: two boyfriends, can work completely. If men can have harems, why can't a girl?"

Xander rolled his eyes, and said, "Just don't ever expect me to jump into bed with a corpse, demon-animated, souled or not."

"Don't worry," Buffy grinned evilly, "I know which of my men to keep apart and which to put to work together . . . about Oz, do you think he's cute? Or should I just go with Jonathan, I know you find him handsome, and I don't have the hassle of stealing him from Cordelia."

"Buffy Summers, _/don't/_ joke about that _/ever/_ again," Xander said pointing a warning finger at her.

"Who says I was joking?" Buffy asked barely keeping her smile from blossoming into laughter.

Xander growled, and Buffy started running, laughing out loud. Xander sped after her, and called out mock angry, "Come back here, woman, so I can give you a proper spanking!" Buffy gave a mock scream of fright as she sped up, Xander right on her heels.

-----

Xander and Buffy came walking out of the plant store; Xander carrying two bags, and Buffy a small little one. They stared ahead at the houses on the other side, and Xander muttered, "Wow, I didn't know you had to do so much to keep a plant growing. Don't they usually do that all by herself?"

"Yeah," Buffy answered with wide eyes, "but I believe I understood something about plants not being in the right climate and native soil and companion plants and animals or something." She turned her head to Xander, and added, "I'm not sure, most of the time I kept thinking, 'I wish Giles were here to translate.'"

"Me too," Xander answered and looked down at the two heavy bags. "Do you think he scammed me?"

"If so, I'll kick his ass for you," Buffy offered sincerely.

Xander looked at the bags again, turned to fully face Buffy, and said, "I need a kiss."

Buffy smiled at him, and replied, "You scamming _/me/_ now?"

"Could be," he said and bent forward a bit.

Buffy grinned and took a step forward, then planted her lips on his. After a while they broke apart, and she said, "You can scam me any time."

"I need another one, to forget how heavy the bags are," Xander said with a pout.

"Oh," Buffy replied and kissed Xander again, their eyes closing to savor the sensation in their mouths.

From above sounded, "Oh, shit! Look out below!" The woman was far too late with her warning. Halfway 'look' Buffy and Xander were splashed with cold water, instantly soaking their hair, faces and the upper parts of their jackets. Xander and Buffy didn't care, they kept kissing each other . . . that was until the concept registered to Buffy. Xander had gotten a little shorter - their height differences easier bridged - her lips got a little softer, and her tongue a bit softer, smaller but no less ferocious in its exploration. It was good, it was enjoyable, very nice even - Buffy didn't care until it filtered through her mind Xander was now Lexa; a girl. She jerked back, and looked up into Lexa's face. She opened her eyes, and Buffy saw the pain there. "Really sorry!" sounded from above, but Lexa and Buffy didn't pay attention.

"Sorry," Buffy echoed the woman's sentiment, guilt in her eyes, obviously realizing what it meant to Xander/Lexa. "First time, I knew it could happen, but . . . unexpected. I won't flinch away again, I promise. I suppose this is nothing something you ever have to worry about happening with Willow." The last Buffy tacked on out of nervousness, and feeling stupid for it.

"No, problem," Lexa said with a forgiving smile, while thinking, -You jerk away from a girl, but not a room temperature corpse?-

"Let's get to the mall, huh?" Buffy asked, and Lexa nodded.

-----

Buffy had her mother's outfit slung over her shoulder as they left Everyday Woman. The earlier incident forgotten, and Lexa asked, "So, how is Angel? He lived? Is he alive? Bullet came out?"

Buffy sniffled, eying Lexa's bouncy breasts contained in the now tight top, buttoned low, with a little jealousy. It really wasn't fair that a guy could have that magnificent breasts after getting cursed to be a girl. Buffy wasn't truly envious anymore, but there were times when she was reminded of unfairness of it all. "He's fine," she answered Lexa.

"You sure? 'Cause, again, I'm willing to operate," Lexa answered her with a grin.

Buffy rolled her eyes, and then that said thoughtfully, "Hmm, I definitely need to consider that third member of my harem. He can keep you two from killing each other when I'm not at home, or spend time in the mistress bedroom for some peace and quiet."

"What did I just tell you?" Lexa said with a dangerous voice. Buffy looked innocently at her, and then ran off again. "Buffy!" Lexa growled and ran after the blonde.

Buffy looked behind her, and called back, "You know, I still can't believe you boiled your daughter." Xander sighed.

-----

That night Buffy arrived at Angel's apartment and was let in. "Hey," Angel said, letting her in. "I-I'm sorry."

"For what?" Buffy asked confused.

Angel looked down ashamed, and said, "For almost getting Cordelia killed. I should have controlled myself, won't happen again."

Buffy rolled her eyes as she entered the apartment deeper, and asked him with a smile, "What is it with you and brooding? Is it some kind of fetish or something? Should I strike a brooding pose if I want to turn you on?"

"A-a- . . . I-I . . . uh," Angel stuttered out.

Buffy grinned at him and sat down confidently in a chair. Angel started to get nervous under her scrutiny, and he said, "I can only be with you at night, when you have to patrol, and I'll endanger you and your friends. I can't take you into the light, I can't give you children, I can't make- . . ."

"God," Buffy interrupted with a perky grin, "now you're sabotaging yourself. You really _/do/_ have a brooding fetish." Angel stuttered something unintelligible and Buffy got up. Like a predator with a seductive look in her eyes she sauntered over, heavily swaying her hips. She placed on finger on his chin, loving the power trip, and whispered, "You don't have to, silly." Angel's surprised look went up several notches into complete shock and confused. Buffy wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her body against his, most notably their crotches, and she said, "I've been thinking, and I like this more and more. I won't choose between you and Xander - I just take you both. That way Xander can take me into the light, give me children should I want any, and you can make me happy while he sleeps. Slayers need less sleep than normal humans, you know. There, I'll be completely happy, but to accommodate your brooding fetish, you get to brood about your position while I'm out with Xander during the day, and when I carry his children. What do you think?"

Buffy pressed herself even closer to him, and enhanced the seductive nature of her smile, while Angel tried to grasp the concept and stutter out a response. "If you really love me, you want to make me happy, and not take away my day life," Buffy added, and kissed him deeply. She broke it a short while later, and looking sweetly up into his eyes she waited for an answer.

Angel coughed, then cleared his throat. He squirmed underneath Buffy's logic, her body pressed against him, and the fragile, sweet, seductive eyes. He never stood a chance. "O-okay, I-I I'm willing to sh-share," he muttered out.

Buffy grinned and kissed him happily. She relaxed a bit, and looking into his eyes, she said, "I was a bit evil using that against you, didn't I?" Angel's eyes widened at that. "So I should think of a reward for you," Buffy said thinking and smiling up at him. "Don't know what yet. Now I gotta find a way to get Xander to accept it, he's going to be a lot tougher to crack." Angel's eyes stared diagonally down, straight through Buffy's forehead. Buffy thought for a moment, and then noticed Angel's look. "Please don't take that as an insult to your manhood or anything," Buffy said with a smirk.

"I-I won't," Angel answered, but Buffy wondered.

The Slayer broke away from him, and found the Angel's tv. She smiled and said, "Tonight we're going to sit on your couch, and watch tv. Like the average, normal couple we can be, see?" Angel nodded.

-----

**Buffy's living room**

**The next afternoon**

Buffy, Willow, Lotion, and Lexa were sitting on the couch and the chairs. They had done their homework together, and were now just talking and watching some tv. Buffy and Willow, and especially Buffy, were nervous. Despite having learned to get reasonably along with the Amazon, and even in their minds having accepted Xander's Halloween accusation they were friends, this was still the first time Lotion was in Buffy's house; the same going for Willow's.

Lotion didn't mind, and was her usual hyper self. In fact, Buffy and Willow were pretty certain the Amazon didn't even notice. Lexa was her usual sexy and teasing self as well - as a girl, Buffy and Willow found, Xander enjoyed being more . . . 'prickly' was what they had come to call it. Why that was, they didn't really know; although Willow had posited the theory that as a girl he/she didn't need to impress Buffy, which unsurprisingly affronted Buffy a little bit.

She had gotten over it though, and was now engrossed in watching a guy on tv so fat they needed to blow a house wall, and use a crane to get him out of the house. "It's horrible," Buffy commented with large eyes, "it's disgusting, he's horrendously ugly, as well as amazingly eeew . . . and yet I can't stop watching."

"I can change the channel for you if you want," Lotion offered happily.

Buffy turned her head to her newest, and most annoying friend, glared for a moment, and then with a softening look said, "Please hurry."

While Lotion picked up the remote and started zapping, Lexa chuckled, and said, "He wasn't so bad. If you looked at him from a certain angle, he was kinda sexy."

Three disgusted faces and equally disgusted voices sounded throughout the living room, each giving their own interpretation of, "Eeeeeuugghh."

Lexa laughed, and then was reduced to giggles. "Oh, the disgusting notion was worth your reactions," Lexa said, continuing to chuckle and giggle. Willow picked up a pillow and slammed it over Lexa's head once. "Hey," she said. An alarm beeped, and Lexa sat up. She pulled her left wrist in front of her and checked the watch. "Time for Conda's nap time," Lexa said with a grin, and Lotion nodded.

"What?" Willow wondered out loud, while Buffy looked dumbfounded at Lexa, who pulled the egg from a pocket of her tight blouse.

Lexa placed the egg on a table and pulled out a handkerchief which she placed over the egg. "Sleep tight," Lotion and Lexa wished the egg at the same time while Willow and Buffy's faces looked even more shocked.

Lexa pulled out the notebook, and while she wrote the same, she said, "16:30, mother and father put daughter to bed." She then put the booklet away again.

Buffy shook her head, and said, "But you boiled it!"

"Yes, to raise her properly, train her well, so?" Lotion asked the Slayer.

The blonde groaned and let herself fall back in the couch. She then got back up, and said, "You're actually taking this serious, really serious, Xander?"

Lexa shrugged, while Willow added, "Even if you didn't boil it . . ."

"My mother's instincts must have come out," Lexa grinned at his oldest friend and somewhat girlfriend. She stopped grinning, and said seriously, "Actually this has got me thinking, which probably means I was right."

"You, thinking?" Buffy mocked him.

"How?" Lotion asked, always interested in her future husband.

"Well," Lexa scratched her ears. "Kids. Pregnancy. I was somehow wondering if I could actually become that; what it was like. Before this whole thing I couldn't be possible so I never even thought about it, you know: not even thinking about girls, mothers . . . but now . . ."

"What? You wanna?" Buffy asked incredulously gesturing to Lexa's stomach with both her head and her right hand a bit.

"Oh, no, at least not anytime soon," Lexa answered, leaning back and looking thoughtfully at the ceiling. "I did always kinda expect it to happen some day, with the whole kids thing, except I never thought about it. Always something of future concern, and now I'm wondering; both sides of the fence so to speak."

"I will make a great mother one day," Lotion decided to butt in.

Lexa moved her head to grin at Lotion, while Willow spoke, "Hey, this is heavy stuff here, can't you put our little competition for her heart aside for a few moments. Go on, Lexa."

Lexa smiled and said, "I suppose that's about it; I'm still too busy thinking about everything to have come to any conclusions."

Lotion smiled, and said, "I have mine all thought out. Yours. I used to consider which of the males of the tribe I choose to marry. There were some nice ones, but all so . . . well, weak, and far too nice, and sweet. Kind is good, love kind, love a good man. Nice and sweet means no backbone, just clean and cook, as they were taught by their mothers and fathers, obey your wife always. I always supposed I could fall in love with one, just like mom did, but . . . ugh . . . mom raised me in her image I suppose . . . then, out of the blue, one heavily slam in my face and out cold I went, the face of a handsome, hot, and _/male/_, so very _/male/_ stranger the last thing I saw before all went black. Then the ideas changed - strong, equal man capable of talking back, and talking with me, thinking with me, and strong healthy children. Only thing changing all the time is exactly where we'll live. Best day of my life."

Everyone stayed silent for a moment, and then Willow muttered, "Hadn't really thought about it like that." They looked at her. "Amazons." Then she explained further, "I always looked at it from my perspective, women in the men's positions, never considered the men's positions, and how they'd be . . . well . . . raised - I suppose is the most neutral way of describing it - and what that would mean for relationships." Willow thought for a few moment, then said, "I can actually see now why a man capable of defeating you in combat - not beating you up for the hell of it - would be alluring, one taught to be strong."

"Yep," Lexa echoed, "wouldn't want a partner, whatever gender, that just knows how to say 'yes, dear', either. Which doesn't make it too wondrous why a lot of men protested for women's rights seventy years back, he?"

"Yeah. Well damn," Buffy said, folding her arms across her chest and pouted. She looked at Lotion, and explained, "Now I can't dislike you for that anymore either."

Lotion grinned at Buffy and said, "Oh, I'm flattered."

Buffy glared at her and said, "I still dislike you for being so annoying."

Lotion shrugged, and looked over at Willow. The witch in training looked a bit surprised, and then smiled, "I've been thinking about kids since I was some ten years old. Wedding too. Never new for sure if I wanted them, but I've definitely imagined what they'd be like, with every crush I had. Lately I've been imagining strong martial arts and witches the next generation guarding the Hellmouth."

"Must be a favorite past time of girls," Lexa said, and then straightened up, looking at Buffy. The Amazon and the witch turned to Buffy at well.

Buffy's eyes widened a bit, and then said with surprise, "Uh . . ." Silently she asked with her eyes if they meant her, and then swallowed. "Ah, well," Buffy said with a sad smile. "I've been thinking of my possible future kids when I was little as well . . . stopped when I was called." They all looked sadly at Buffy, who explained, "I've been to busy thinking of ways to avoiding death, stopping vampires, and how I could forget about any future with any husband and kids; so never a problem when I fell in love with a vampire, almost like- . . ."

"WHAT?" Joyce's scream came from the kitchen as she stormed into the living room. Buffy's eyes were wide and in shock - she had completely forgotten! The one thing she hadn't shared with her mother yet, and her mother being in the kitchen. "VAMPIRE?" Joyce reached the couches and looked at Lexa sitting in the middle of the sunlight streaming in from the large forward window. "What's this about a vampire? Evil? Dust?"

Lexa, Willow, and Buffy were quiet, scared of Joyce and what she was going to do to Buffy. Lotion had no such qualms and relaxedly explained, "Her second boyfriend, Angel. Some gypsies cursed him, returned the person he was before the demon took over back to his body, put his soul back. Apparently he's a good guy now, a nice guy according him and a few others. I think he's a better guy in the vacuum cleaner." Buffy and Willow glared at Lotion, having completely eliminated any chance to break this is easily as possible to Joyce. Lotion misunderstood completely, and said, "What? Xander thinks the same thing."

Buffy and Willow groaned. "Don't you groan!" Joyce said angrily. "Buffy, ever since the big reveal we've been talking much more. I like that we restarted our relationships, I thought you were hones with, would come to me for advice, you even told me about your confused feelings for Xander . . ." Buffy looked with horror, while Lexa blushed lightly. ". . . so what's this about the vampire? Why haven't you told me?"

"I . . . well . . . I . . ." Buffy started, while Joyce ire grew by the moment.

Lexa decided to help her friend out, and explained, "Because, Buffy's mom, deep down she knows how bad it is to fall for a 240-year-old, demon-animated corpse that can't enter the light, and was hiding in the shadows like a coward last school year. It's just her heart that's the problem." Buffy looked at him in shock and disbelief that he knew that. "Ampata taught me that," Lexa said smiling.

"_/Ampata/_ knew?" Joyce said angry that even a two-week exchange student know the whole deal, but not she, Buffy's mother. Lexa winced, and mouthed 'sorry' to Buffy.

"He found out accidentally," Buffy said quickly as explanation, hoping she wasn't grounded for the rest of her natural life.

Joyce's anger deflated, she sighed, and said, "I suppose our talks, especially about parts of your love life are far more than I could ask for . . . but a vampire? 240 years old?"

"He looks young," Buffy defended herself. "If he looked 240 . . . well . . . I didn't really know he was a vamp at the time I was falling for him - it was really more like, sorta in the middle." Joyce sat down defeated on the armrest of the chair Lotion was sitting in. "He's good, he really is," Buffy added whimpering.

Joyce thought for a moment of forbidding Buffy to see the vampire again, but realized that wouldn't stop her daughter, only alienate her, and she did say she trusted her daughter's ability to handle herself. She sighed and said, "I suppose there's nothing to be done about that except cutting out your heart, and that seems a bit counter productive. Can I at least, meet, this . . . male life form. Does he have an address?"

"Y-yeah, I'll give it to you later," Buffy muttered, and then there was silence.

And more silence.

For once even a non-bunnied Lotion was silent; just to grasp the full scope of the situation.

"You're a mostly heterosexual girl," Willow broke the silence, having mustered all her new-found confidence, and all her brain power to think of a topic to get across her lips, wanting the uncomfort to end. "I say that means you're fully functional. Of course, to be sure you can just stay a girl for a month and see if you get a period." Willow cringed the moment the words came out her mouth, and fully grasped what she just said - Lexa's face proving her sudden realization. From the verbal torture of her best female friend, she just started the verbal torture of her best male friend.

The others looked surprised at Willow for a moment, and then Buffy gained an evil grin. "Yeah, Xan, you did say you wanted to explore what it's like to be a girl, there's nothing more important or better to experience to find out about being a girl," Buffy said, glad the whole situation was away from her. Lexa looked uncertain, and Buffy delivered the punch line, "Or were you lying about that, and just wanted to toy with us?"

"Well, no!" Lexa exclaimed, and then faltered, gulping.

Joyce, glad the horrible moment was over, and glad she could apply her mother skills again, as well as help out her daughter's friends, said, "Buffy does have a point, actually - about know what it's like to be female, I mean, not her little entrapment." Lexa looked up at her, disbelieving what she said. Joyce continued, gently, "You have a rare gift here, Xander. I know at first glance exploring being a woman didn't include exploring that particular physical aspect of it, but there's a lot more to menstruation than just dripping blood; emotions, and mental processes for one thing." Joyce than smiled at Lexa, and continued, "It isn't just pain, and cramps and irritability, it has its good points as well, and if you're lucky you won't have the bad at all. The big bonus is you can for certain say if we're all overreacting about the whole thing - should you find we are, none of these would ever be able to pull, 'I'm pmsing' on you ever again."

"Hey!" Buffy protested a bit, thinking it would be just her luck that Lexa's period would be a smooth ride and Xander never gave her any slack ever again once a month.

Willow felt guilty over putting Xander into this mess, and so she asked Lotion, "Hey, Lotion, you don't have a problem with your future husband turning out all girly after a period?"

"Nope," Lotion answered with a big smile. "Xander and Lexa already more man than whole tribe could handle. I think a period would only make him even more man; he _/is/_ my future husband that learned the Chestnuts in days where an Amazon takes months, after all, and in most cases not till she's twenty-five."

"Thank you for the vote of confidence, Lotion," Lexa offered with sarcasm. Lotion just nodded with a smile. Lexa continued, "I can't." She looked up at Joyce and said with a smile, "I like what you said, Mrs. Summers, but . . ." She turned back to all her friends, and continued, "skipping the occasional class because I went there as Lexa, okay, but they're going to notice for a whole month. I would miss tests, which means I wouldn't pass, and I'm not going to put my whole life on hold just to experience a period. For one thing I want to graduate with my friends, for another I want to get out that hell hole as soon as possible. After graduation there's always time."

"You definitely shouldn't sacrifice school for this experiment," Joyce said, once again motherly, saying the truth, and glad it helped the kind, young man, and occasional young woman out. Lexa nodded with satisfaction, sighing with both relief and a little regret.

"Dang," Buffy said, and sighed.

-----

"Catch!" Xander called with a grin and smoothly tossed the egg across the distance.

They were on the lawn in front of the school, and Lotion smoothly caught the egg. Then tossed it back. Cordelia, Buffy, and Willow who sat in front of a tree heaving lunch looked at them with the evil eye. Oz barely batted an eyelash.

Around the lawn there were more 'parents', who looked with horror and disbelief at the display. One girl managed to bring up the care to ask, "H-how can you be doing that?"

Xander turned his head to look at her as he threw the egg back to Lotion, and answered with a smile, "What, playing catch with my daughter?" The girl nodded, following the egg with horror. Lotion caught it, and once more it didn't break open in sludge. "Have you never seen parents toss their baby up just a bit and catching it? Same thing, just with both of us." He caught the egg that Lotion threw back, then looked back at the girl. She nodded just a bit, and Xander explained, "Seen how much the babies smile?" He held the egg out and pointed at the face with a big smile they had drawn on their egg, and said, "See, our daughter loves it too, she's smiling happily."

He then casually tossed the egg back to Lotion who was a few meters away from. "But, aren't you afraid she'll break."

"No," Lotion answered, tossing the egg back, "we raised our daughter to be tough." Their classmates looked with disbelief at Lotion's statement.

Except for the female Scoobies, who continued to give the two the evil eye, and Oz who stayed his laid back self. "Damn, cheaters," Willow muttered.

"What type of people _/boil/_ their daughter?" Buffy huffed pissed off. She looked over and saw 'Alex' lying on a soft hanky in between Willow's legs, safe and sound. "Look at all we do to keep our baby boy safe, and they . . . _/play/catch/_."

Cordelia nodded, and checked up on her son in the stylish and safe backpack, while doing so said, "When Mr. Whitmore fails them, we'll see who has the last laugh."

Oz looked up and said, "Didn't he say you couldn't fail this, that it was about the experience. I know he didn't say it outright to keep some people from just tossing the egg first chance they got, but . . . that's what it came down to, right?"

"They _/boiled/_ their daughter," Buffy pointed out. Oz nodded and shrugged, not feeling the need to argue the point.

Cordelia checked out her well-dressed egg, and said, "Nice and fashionable. I'm like the best mom, ever."

"I think being a mother takes a bit more than buying stylish clothes," Willow pointed out.

Cordelia whipped her head about to look at Willow. "As apposed to keeping my child naked, and boiling him," Cordelia shot back with narrowed eyes.

"Hey," Buffy defended 'their' choice - or rather their pride not to follow Cordelia's example after her scathing remark the other day, "Alex is a beautiful child and he can choose his own clothes - he likes his shell. You're just being cruel forcing your clothes on top of Jamie's own clothes, you might as well boil him by putting him in a pan and turn up the fire."

"The shell is the skin, not his clothes," Cordelia shot back with narrowed eyes.

"Is not," Buffy returned.

"Ladies," Oz interrupted, drawing two angry gazes to him, "it's a free country. Let's just sit back, relax, leave each other's parental choice to yourselves and berate Xander and Lotion for tossing their boiled daughter about like a piece of meat."

Buffy and Cordelia immediately whipped their heads back to the tossing couple, and Buffy muttered, "Abusers."

Cordelia added, "Cheaters." Willow gave Oz a grateful smile, and he returned a small smirk.

-----

Cordelia, Lotion, Deo, Buffy, Willow, and Lexa stood in front of a tattoo parlor. "So exactly why did we have to meet here again?" Cordelia asked out loud.

"The tattoo for the ritual tonight," Deo explained casually. "Apparently one can't just buy tattoo supplies and set tattoos yourself in this country. So instead of doing it properly during the ritual, I am forced to improvise and must have them set right now at this shop."

"Oh," Willow said a little timidly, but then steeled herself. If she could wear these days what she was wearing now, and had her hair, getting a little tattoo was nothing. She took a breath and she went for the door first, the others following.

"Ah! Deo!" the man apparently setting the tattoos said from his counter. Unlike the cliched look of a tattoo parlor owner, he was well groomed, and didn't seem to have any visible tattoos on his body. "The food was delicious as usual; you are a true wonderful addition to our town." Deo smiled and gave only a tiny bow. The man took in the girls and said, "I suppose these are the girls that want the tattoo."

"All but my daughter Lotion," Deo confirmed. "Two Amazons need to be part of the ritual, and since this is supposed to be part of the ritual, she should be present during the setting of the tattoo as well."

"Well," the man said rubbing his hands in anticipation, taking in the beautiful girls. "I readied all the colors, and it will be a honor working on such beautiful women."

"Just don't try to take a peek," Cordelia warned him.

"Oh, no," the man said with complete honesty, "I would never do that."

-----

That night, they had gone to a place in the desert, that Deo had scouted out earlier. She was now drawing the same intricate symbol in the sand that they all had tattooed on their arm. The sight reminded especially Willow of the tattoo and she winced. She pulled up her sleeve and looked at the cushion of bandages that covered it. It had hurt quite a bit when it had been put on.

Once Deo was finished with the symbol in the sand, she looked up at the dark, starry night. The symbol was some ten meters in diameter, and so plenty of place for all of them to sit around. The elder Amazon then went to her backpack and pulled out ten red candles. Deo made one step from the outside of the symbol, at the head of it, and placed the candle there. Then circling the symbol a meter outside of it, she placed the candles with an even distance between them. Behind her, Lotion lit the candles one by one with a box of matches; and the flames burned as red as the candles. A rather thick trail of smoke pulled upward from each candle, and left a powerful odor.

Once all the candles burned, Deo nodded with satisfaction that all was right. She went over to the back pack, and pulled out a bowl and a bottle. The bottle was filled with a yellowish fluid, while the same symbol that was on the ground and their arms was on the bottom of the bowl. She poured the bowl full of the liquid, and closed the bottle again after placing the ground at the head of the symbol. She went to go stand there, and asked everyone, "You have the papers?" All the yet-to-become-Amazons pulled out a piece of paper containing the Amazon chant written in how to pronounce it in the western alphabet, they would have to chant later, as well as the pledge in English. "Good," Deo said and pointed to the edge of the symbol. "Find a place evenly dispersed around the edge of the symbol, stand there and place them on the ground there."

The girls did as told. Lotion was sitting closest to the head where Deo was, then came Lexa, Buffy - exactly opposite Doe - Willow, and finally Cordelia. Deo nodded in satisfaction, and raised her hands to the sky, then she intoned, "We have gathered here under the sky, in honor of our ancestors and the goddess Xi Ama-lang, remembered only by us, the Amazons, her honored companions. We shed our coverings . . ." Deo nodded at the others as she started unbuttoning her top, and the others started undressing as well. As she continued talking without pause she tossed her top in the middle of the symbol, and the girls did the same with her clothes, ". . . to show we came here in good faith, that we have nothing to hide, and came unarmed."

Buffy could not believe she was doing this. The top, and now her jeans weren't such a problem - she was used to bikinis on the beach - but now, and worse, she knew two of the girls present enjoyed naked female bodies the men enjoyed naked female bodies; actually one of those two girls really was a man. Mustering her courage she unhooked her braw and tossed it on the growing pile of clothes, feeling suddenly very conscious as warm desert air caressed her breasts. Left from her Willow put her blouse on the pile and proved she hadn't worn a bra at all.

Willow herself would normally have been extremely nervous about the whole ordeal, if she weren't so excited about watching naked female bodies. She unabashedly watched as Lexa shed her top and revealed her creamy, round, large c-cup breasts. As she started pealing off her short skirt she looked over at Buffy, a smile creeping up her face as she took in her best friend, who was obviously much, much more nervous than her. Deciding to protect her best friend just a little, she looked over to Lotion, and had to admit the annoying Amazon was beautiful. Muscles, curves where needed; if she wasn't so annoying and a clear rival for Xander/Lexa's affections . . . She moved on to Deo who just finished tossing her underpants on the pile, and Willow's eyes widened. She may have been older, and one giant bitch, but everything was very much still where it was supposed to be. Deciding lusting after the woman responsible for several ordeals was bad, Willow looked over to the final girl; Cordelia. Oh, yeah, the 'I hate Cordelia'-club had most definitely closed its doors. She was completely unaware of the grin on her face.

Lexa had no problems with shedding her clothes. She knew she was smoking hot, and showing it off, including her trimmed pubic hair and the beginnings of her vagina was no a problem, it was practically a privilege. Better yet, she could let her gaze go around the circle, deciding to save the best for last. With a bright smile on her face she studied Lotion's lovely body; the triangle between her legs looked inviting - not as short as her own pubes, but there was definite proof of grooming. Her mother was no less delectable, and Cordelia was almost as smoking as Lexa herself. Her breasts were prominent, and slightly bigger than Lexa's and Lotion's who were about the same size. Cordelia's pubes were non-existent though, and Lexa's eyebrows rose approvingly, growing a bigger grin. Then came Willow, and Lexa smiled. Willow's breasts were the smallest of them all, but they were most definitely not non-existent. The rest of her body was lovely, the red, short pubic hair proving she was a natural redhead. The physical training had done her good; although it had gotten a backseat lately to her magic-control training lately and although she was sexy to begin with, the somewhat enhanced muscle-tone enhanced her already considerable sexiness. Their eyes cross, and they smiled an almost devious smile at each other - that is to say, they smiled a fully devious smile at each other. They were very much enjoying the view.

Finally there was Buffy - before Lexa looked over, she took a deep breath in preparation. Wow. The blonde was amazing. Although he/she had seen her naked before, it had only been for a short while; most of the time they'd been busy kissing and pressing their bodies together. She was not passing up the opportunity to study her more closely. Albeit the shortest of them all, Buffy was no less sexy. Her legs with Slayer-enhanced strength and muscles seemed as inviting to have wrapped around as they had been back then. Her hips flared nicely and her tummy had a fantastic shape, a tightness of muscles, mixed with just the right amount of fat to have shape. Her breasts were lovely, perking out, even more now that she nervously, defensively wrapped her right arm underneath them, grabbing her left arm. The nervous pout, framed by blonde hair and adorned by her lovely, cute nose, and amazing bluish eyes finished her look. It was an odd, yet lovely reversal, to see the great Slayer the least comfortable of all of them - it made her seem all the more beautiful.

Deo finished her speech, "With our nakedness, we also show the trust we give each other. We are the same whatever superficial differences we have, we recognize each other as sisters, and accept each other and our other sisters who could not be present at this great moment." They were all naked now, the only thing still on the Scoobies bodies was the patch that guarded their tattoos.

Once Deo had finished, Buffy looked over to Lexa timidly, and asked softly, "Could you try not to look, Xan?"

"Sorry," Lexa smirked, "not possessed by a demon, can't turn my head backward."

"Very funny," Cordelia interjected with a scowl, "at least try to put the grin away . . . that goes for both of you." Willow blushed, and attempted to look innocent and totally not smiling while staring. She failed miserably.

Deo grinned at the exchange, and Lexa just gave a shrug at Cordelia. "Now we sit," Deo said, and sat down, the others followed suit.

Cordelia grunted and said was on the female members of the Scooby Gangs mind, "Did this _/have/_ to be naked? Nice wide panties would be nice, now I have all this sand in my ass."

Despite their own somewhat discomfort, Willow and Lexa couldn't help but smile while looking over at Cordelia, and from her to the other girls. Lexa felt herself grow just a bit moist, and her nipples were hard. This was definitely an advantage being female - arousal was far less obvious, she reflected.

Deo picked up the bowl, and held it to the sky, continuing, "Bless this drink, All-But-Forgotten One. Enslaved to the monster god of mountains How-too, you were used and abused. You picked up the sword and slayed your master, freeing yourself from obsession; then you went to the one who gave you to the monster, your father Di-guan, slaughtering every male in between him and you, mortal or god. You destroyed his kingdom, and locked him, chained him, the same hell he condemned you. It's the reason why he forgives everyone today, because he still can't forgive himself for what he did to you . . ." Deo took a small sip from the fluid and handed it to Lotion, while the non-Amazons listened to the story with curiosity.

Lotion then raised the bowl and continued the tale, "Xi Ama-lang, honored teacher, in the state of hating all men, you found us - a group of lost women, with wailing children, three thousand nine hundred and sixty-eight years ago. A tribe of farmers on the run, with no knowledge of the way of the sword." Lotion took a small sip, and returned the bowl to her mother.

Deo then raised the bowl, and spoke with a new power, a grander tone, "Rider of the Celestial Horse, you took pity on your sisters, and took us into your protection, taught us the way of the sword, and the bow, the life of a warrior. Then you asked us how we came to be as manless as she, and so we told you; told you how the bandits came to our village, and we had no way to defend ourselves, how the men sent us away, and remained to fight - not to win, not to defend, they knew peaceful farmers could not defeat battle-hardened bandits - but to buy us the time to flee with their lives . . ."

The Scoobies looked surprised, shocked even, especially Willow. Deo continued undisturbed, "you were surprised and moved, and you realized that not all men are evil. You increased your training, taught us to tame the horse, and then we rode back - for vengeance. And vengeance we took . . . afterwards we made a pledged. We pledged that from that moment onward, no man would have to sacrifice their lives for us, in honor and remembrance of men's sacrifices, we would take up the sword, become warriors, teach our daughters to protect our honored men. We forged this symbol then, to mark our passage, and our promise, which we burned into our very beings. Today we are gathered together for another group of worthy warrior women to join us, and make the same pledge, to fight and protect our tribe, to guard our men in return for the protection they bought us with their lives so long ago, and burn it into their beings." She took a sip from the bowl again, and nodded to the Scoobies.

Buffy, Willow, Cordelia, and Lexa, all rather moved by the tale and the surprise origin of the Amazons, only slowly looked down at their arms. Steadily they removed the patches, revealing the tattoos. Willow's, Cordelia's, and Lexa's were still slightly smudged, their skin still healing. Buffy's was perfect, her skin already healed due to slayer healing. "Figures," Cordelia muttered with annoyance.

Deo handed the bowl over to Lexa, and said, "Make the pledge, then take a sip."

Lexa nodded and picked up her paper. "I, Lexa LaVelle Harris, hereby pledge loyalty to the tribe, and the ideals it stands for. I pledge to stand by my sisters, fight along with them, and guard the tribe from all human and inhuman evil in honor of our ancestors, and the honored men who bought our lives with theirs. With this pledge I am an Amazon, and will be so to best of my abilities, and conscience." Lexa then took a sip of the alcoholic drink.

Lotion spoke up, "I recognize the pledge, made by Alexander Lexa LaVelle Harris in good conscience and faith."

Deo spoke up, "I recognize the same, Alexander Lexa Harris is an Amazon, now so accepted by all of the tribe."

Deo made a gesture and Lexa handed the bowl over to Buffy. The blonde gulped, and took out her paper. "I, Buffy Anne Summers, hereby pledge loyalty to the tribe, and the ideals it stands for. I pledge to stand by my sisters, fight along with them, and guard the tribe from all human and inhuman evil in honor of our ancestors, and the honored men who bought our lives with theirs. With this pledge I am an Amazon, and will be so to best of my abilities, and conscience," she read out loud, and took a swallow from the drink.

"I recognize the pledge, made by Buffy Anne Summers, in good conscience and faith," Lotion spoke solemnly.

Deo added, "I recognize the same, Buffy Anne Summers is an Amazon, now so accepted by all of the tribe."

Willow was next, and finally Cordelia, the same pledge and recognition sentences spoken. Deo held out her hand and Cordelia returned the stone bowl. The Amazon placed it on the ground, and spoke, "Four new Amazons are here, joined in blood and the fires of coming battles, we honor them." She lit a match, and then put the remaining alcohol drink afire. As it burned, Deo gestured to their papers, and the whole group started chanting the Chinese chants.

As they did so, the flames on the candles steadily grew in size, and the wind around them bit by bit grew stronger, whirling in a gentle twister around the group. The first thing to notice was the large flames that rose above them, making them stop their repeated chanting. At the same time all the Amazons groaned out and grabbed their right arms, noticing the tattoo, the symbol of the Amazons glowing the same bright red as the candle's flames.

"What the . . .?" Lexa muttered out and then looked at Deo in anger. "What did you do?"

"_/This/_ is **-not-** my doing, future son-in-law," Deo answered with completely seriousness. "This is _/not/_ supposed to happen."

"Oh, no!" Willow exclaimed wit fear in the gently breeze, "This can't be the Hellmouth's influence, can it?"

**"-No, my sister, this is not the Hellmouth,-"** a voice sounded from the wind, both loud and whispering at the same time. In the middle of the circle, above the clothes formed something in the slow twister - a face, then a woman, then something else. It never completely showed, always falling apart before it could form, a light came from whatever it was, but then was gone, and returned, the light was never bright or full enough to really be considered a light.

"Xi Ama-lang," Deo spoke in shock, recognizing the face and figure in the fleeting moments there was something recognizable.

Lotion blurted out in utter shock, "Can't be. Last time she was supposed to have appeared was so long ago, it's nothing but myths and legends."

The goddess who seemed to have a face facing each on of them, most definitely smiled for a moment, and then said, **"-How could I miss this momentous occasion, my sister?-"** She tipped toward Buffy a bit who looked wide-eyed, **"-A Slayer, the protector, the Amazon beyond Amazons, . . .-"** The goddess tipped toward Lexa who had the same expression and spoke, **"-. . . a woman that is a man that is a woman, carrying the name Protector of Mankind . . .-"** The goddess tipped toward Willow, and said, **"-. . . and a witch all joining the tribe at one time.-"**

"Hey!" Cordelia called out annoyed, "What am I, chop-liver?"

The goddess actually chuckled and tipped her amorphous form toward her, and spoke,**"-No, singling you out. A girl known to be utterly selfish only a short time ago, willing to give her life to protect her friends, sisters, and brothers from evil - a true Amazon - and joining the tribe as well. How could I possibly not bless these myself? Welcome sisters, and may your lives be long and fruitful, filled with joy, love, and glory in these interesting times. Welcome to the tribe.-"**

The gentle twister fluttered away, the form of the goddess withered, and then the candle flames went short again, all while the tattoos stopped glowing. All was quite. Lotion and Deo looked with amazing wonder at the scene.

"Oh, just _/great/_!" Buffy cursed throwing her hands in the air and dumping it on the sand.

"Yep," Willow said in defeat.

"Shit, and running comes to mind," Lexa grumbled.

Cordelia finished, "You really have the shittiest, stupidest goddess ever, you know that?"

The four of them got up and started grabbing for their clothes from the pile. "What?" Lotion asked in shock.

Lexa looked at the still sitting Amazons, and explained, "In some circles - China, I believe - that would be considered an outright curse, and if it wasn't that, wishing us that on top of the Hellmouth jinxed us for the next thousand years or so."

"Uh, guys?" Buffy started looking distastefully at her panties she was holding up, "should we put them on or go home naked? She did do the whole jinx thing right on top of them, you know?"

They all paused, and then Cordelia bit out, "I'll risk it, after all, it isn't like we're not doomed anyway."

"She's right," Lexa said and started dressing.

Lotion piped up, "Don't you guys think a goddess' blessing's power would defeat the Hellmouth's energies?"

Willow said with a distasteful look, pulling on her blouse, "I wouldn't assume that, be very, very careful." Lexa nodded.

-----

A few days later, Xander, Buffy, Lotion, and Willow were walking along toward Xander's apartment. "So," Buffy started, "are you guys looking over your shoulder every chance you get as well?"

"Yep," Xander said.

"Uhuh," Willow said.

"Are you really that worried?" Lotion asked them. "I believe in the goddess. Couldn't be that any bad stuff that comes along was already coming along, but now we live through it and find love despite it?"

"Nope," Xander answered.

Buffy explained, "Anything bad that was coming, will be worse, and we'll get a whole slew of bad stuff that wasn't coming on top of it."

Xander moved a little a head of the others, and said, "Something bad is coming, something really bad because of that damn goddess stupid blessing. I just know it." A car drove by, through a small pool of rain water, and it splashed on Xander. Lexa sighed with annoyance and she said, "Oh, yeah, it's coming alright."

The two four of them reached Xander's apartment complex not much later. It was then that the heavy voice sounded. "Lexa!" The four stopped in their tracks and slowly turned around. There stood a demon, blue skin, three meters tall, and arms like tree trunks. A few horns, and razor-sharp teeth in a long snout finished the look. Lexa felt pity on whoever had to make the demon's pants.

"Oh, yeah," Lexa said nodding. She took a step forward and looked up at the monstrous demon. "That would be me."

"What do you want?" Willow called out, and then shrugged at her friends disbelieving looks, saying, 'What? You don't know? Start with mayhem and death.'

"You're hand in marriage, Lexa," the demon spoke with a big grin. Four dropped jaws looked at him.

Lexa recovered first and turned to Lotion, commenting dryly, "You still think we're not jinxed?" Lotion took a step back. Lexa looked back up and asked, "And what if I refuse?"

"Then I will defeat you in combat, and you'll _/have/_ to marry me," the demon answered her.

"Future son-in-law!" sounded from the right and a moment later Deo skidded to a halt, looking up at the demon. "Oh, I felt the portal through which he came opening. I came to warn you."

Lexa nodded, annoyance growing in her. Buffy lost her cool first, took several steps toward Deo and yelled, "This is _/your/_ doing! Your damn goddess blessed him, and you _/still/_ can't leave him alone?"

Deo countered, "A blessing from the goddess would only make it more important for Lotion to marry Xander, but I had nothing to do with this! Why would I send a demon after future husband? I want him to live, to marry Lotion, not dead and buried."

"Then how does it know Lexa became an Amazon and the stupid rule of being defeated in combat?" Buffy snarled at Deo.

The Amazon shrugged, "Ask him."

"_/Mother/_!" Lotion hissed in anger.

**"-Enough talk!-"** the demon demanded powerfully. "Is it yes, or do we fight?"

"No," Lexa said and pulled the egg from its safe pocket, and she continued, "Hold on a moment, I have to- . . ."

The demon's fist slammed into Lexa and she staggered back, coughed and dropped to the floor screaming in pain. She let the egg go and it rolled onto the pavement. Any protests of Lexa not fighting the demon died instantly with the others. They backed away with the sudden movement. Too surprised they didn't do anything immediately and, the demon noticed the egg. "What's with the egg?" it asked, shrugged, and brought his foot down upon it.

"NO!" Lexa screamed and jumped forward, managing to cover the egg just before the foot crushed it. Instead it slammed on Lexa's back and she screamed in pain.

"You're trying to save an egg?" the demon asked confused.

"Urgh," Lexa groaned in pain, rising herself off the egg. She grabbed it, and then quickly tossed it over to Lotion who caught her precious daughter delicately.

As Lexa painfully got to her feet, the demon muttered puzzled, "Why would you take a beating for an egg?"

"Nobody touches my daughter," Lexa hissed in return.

"An egg? Don't humans have live births?" the demon asked in confusion.

Lexa jumped up painfully and landed her most powerful fist into the demon's stomach, while roaring with the effort. The demon didn't anything but take a step back and keep smile plastered on its face; or with the snout, that's the best explanation they could make out of its expression. Lexa looked rather shocked, it felt like hitting stone, except that it didn't break, and she'd thought she'd at least make the demon wince a bit. "Impressive, you really are as strong as claimed," the demon said still smiling.

The following fist to Lexa's face and upper body sent her flying back several meters till she slammed against her apartment complex. She groaned in pain, and slowly got up. The demon grinned out loud and said, "You are beaten, Lexa, you'll have to marry me. Even if you weren't, you cannot possibly hope to defeat me."

Buffy, Willow, and also Lotion were fed up with the demon attacking their best friend with impunity. They readied to attack it themselves, when Deo's voice interrupted, "Future husband! The demon cannot marry you, if you're already married!"

"Already married?" the demon asked dangerously.

"His male form defeated my daughter, that means he can to marry her," Deo explained out loud.

"Male _/form/_?" the demon questioned.

"Jusenkyo curse," Deo explained with an intense look on her face.

"So that's it!" Willow hissed angrily. "This is why you summoned the demon!"

"I did not," Deo answered indignant, "I'm just handed future husband a way out."

"I'm . . . not marrying . . . you!" Lotion called out loud with some difficulty, getting better. "You don't even apply, 'When and Amazon is defeated by a man.' You're not a man, you're a demon!"

"It is close enough, future husband, marrying my daughter is your only chance," Deo called out.

"Mother!" Lotion hissed, not believing this.

Lexa laughed out loud, "How do you know he won't kill everyone here but me, if I go marry Lotion."

"Because the tribe would hunt him down and kill him," Deo answered immediately, "If he knows the Amazons, which he obviously thus, he'll know that should he kill Amazons, especially to avoid a tradition he himself sought out to marry you, we would hunt him down to the ends of the world and beyond to kill him. He can kill one Amazon, he can kill a few, but not all of us, and they will find out about what happened here."

"That is most annoyingly true," the demon hissed angrily, eying Deo with distaste.

"Marry my daughter, or marry the demon, those are your only choices," Deo said sharply, stressing the importance. Buffy, Willow, and Lotion were too shocked at sudden events to come up with anything to say, instead they just looked from Deo, to the demon, to Lexa and back again.

Lexa grimaced, then snarled and with a quick motion jumped up to the main entrance. She opened the door and entered the building with some difficulty, grumbling all the way. Everyone looked surprised at a fleeing Lexa. That couldn't be! After a few moments of confused silence, the demon roared, "Come out, Lexa! Or I will destroy the building and anyone in it!"

"HOLD YOUR HORSES! HAVE SOME PATIENCE!" Lexa's voice screamed out rather clearly. The demon bent to his right and noticed Lexa standing there on her balcony. "I'M GETTING MY WEDDING DRESS ALREADY!" Then much more sweetly and innocently Lexa called out, "You wouldn't want you sweet sexy, fiancee, love of your life, to marry you in a pair of faded jeans, now would you?"

The demon blinked twice, and then with a smile and surprising sweet voice said, "Oh, of course, take your time my love."

Then Lexa disappeared back into the apartment, calling from it, "I should warn you though! My cooking is spicy!" The demon seemed happy about that.

"What?" came from Buffy and Willow, looking completely flabbergasted at what they heard Lexa say.

Deo had her jaw dropped as well. "This can't . . ."

"MOTHER!" Lotion snarled and walked over to her. She grabbed her mother by the collar and hissed, "You underestimated future husband's pride! AGAIN! Now he go marry a demon, and IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT!"

"I- but- I-" Deo muttered.

The front door of the complex opened again, and Lexa came out, in a short skirt and a white blows tied off underneath her breast. "Oh, yoohoo! Down, here sweetums!" Lexa called and the demon looked down, smiling instantly, when he saw Lexa shake her breasts at him and bat her eyelashes. "How' my big, strong, honey bear?"

Then she jumped up high to the demon's head, and landing against him, while saying, "You and me are going to be soooo happy together!" She wrapped her arms around his snout, and as she planted a big kiss right smack on the demon's happy nose, her left arm tuned on a lighter. The demon made a smooch face and went to plant a kiss on Lexa's whole face, and she tossed something in his mouth with her right face. Then with a grimace she rammed her right fist in his nose, and the demon gulped involuntary and surprised. She then pushed off his chest with her feet and somersaulted backward, saying, "5 . . . 4 . . . 3 . . ." She landed with a grunt of pain and some difficulty. She straightened up while saying, "2 . . . 1 . . ." She pointed at the confused-looking demon, and with a might explosion his entire upper body splat apart, the upper part of his skull landing horns first into the soil. Blue and green pieces flying everywhere.

"I warned you it was spicy," Lexa muttered as the remainder dropped to its knees and then keeled over. There gas started forming, and the remains of the demon started to decompose slowly.

Lexa turned to her friends and Deo, who were still looking with surprise at the demon's violent end. "You used a bomb," Deo said then, and Lexa stalked over her.

"Well, they sell such big bags of fertilizer, I had some left, and didn't know what to do with until," Lexa said and pointed at the demon corpse. "Some detergent, and a few other choice chemicals and . . . 'Anything goes' martial arts is what I've been taught, I decided to take it literally. Oh, and uh, next time a demon comes for my hand in marriage, I'll make a few more, and use them on you. You're stronger than me, but that doesn't mean some explosives can't even the playing field."

"I didn't . . ."

"I don't care," Lexa said with a huge grin bordering on insanity, "I don't care if you're lying then as well, I don't even care if you're telling the truth. Boom. Understand me?"

"Perfectly," Deo answered.

Then once again grumbling in extreme annoyance, Lexa stalked back into her apartment complex.

"Wow," Lotion and Buffy said together.

-----

As Mr. Whitmore handed out the grades to the parenthood experiment, he said, "Well done, almost all of you." Buffy looked at her and Willow's grade as Mr. Whitmore handed it to them. She looked happily at the B+ and showed it to Willow who was sitting next to her.

A bit later Mr. Whitmore was done, apart form Xander's and Lotion's assignment, who looked at each other a bit. Mr. Whitmore continued speaking as he walked to the front of the class, "I have to do this last assignment apart from the rest . . ." He reached the front and turned back to class. Cordelia and Buffy looked with vindication in their eyes, while Willow looked a little concerned for her childhood friend. "A clear case of cheating," Mr. Whitmore spoke, and with a gesture he kept Xander and Lotion from protesting. He continued, ". . . in any other case. Xander and Xion here boiled their egg, making it much easier to keep in tact. Oddly enough, despite the cheat, the rest of their assignment and their essay is much more detailed then many of the rest of you're assignments - and the explanation for boiling their egg is, quite frankly, brilliant." Buffy and Cordelia looked shocked, Willow smiled neutrally, while Xander and Lotion's faces got bigger and bigger grins. Mr. Whitmore explained further, "They took the egg as the metaphor, and boiling it as the metaphor for a raising a child style that was designed to make them strong very fast. I've never come across anyone who took a way of cheating at an assignment, and then did more in the surrounding work to justify it, making a perfectly rounded assignment. Should I fail them I know they're going to take it to the board, and I'll now the best I can get out of it, would be to make them do it again, because they have definitely done the work." Mr. Whitmore grinned, "So, Ms. Lu and Mr. Harris, as an applause to the ultimate cheat, and all the good work you have done, I can only give you the only A+ on this assignment."

"But they cheated!" Cordelia exclaimed in disbelief.

While Buffy added, "How can you give them an A+ in parenting when they _/boiled/_ their daughter!"

"They boiled an egg symbolizing their daughter, Ms. Summers," Mr. Whitmore explained to her with a grin.

"This isn't fair," Buffy said and let her head fall down on the table, and the class burst out in laughter.

To Be Continued . . .

Author's notes:

Finished! And so is the third part in the Dana saga! I'm still waiting for my second beta-reader to finish it, and then I'll put that one up as well. I hope you guys enjoyed this, and had lot's of laughs, and you give lots of feedback here: 3d.masterchello.nl.


	23. part 23

----23----

So, now I have four fiancées after me, an uncute tomboy, a lunatic cook with a giant spatula, a nutty Amazon, and a stupid rich-girl ballerina who beats up her opponents, and on top of that an old crone who wants me as her son-in-law, and an old perverted bastard who keeps stealing women's underwear and grabs their breasts including mine at every opportunity. To top it all off there are several 'rivals' for the fiancées I don't want, who want to kill me...

And oh, yeah, unlike you, you perverted, dishonorable horndog, I actually HATE turning into a girl. It's a living hell!

See if you can top that,

Your pal,

Ranma.

Xander finished reading Ranma's letter, and shook his head. "Living hell, he says," he muttered with a grin. "Come back to me when you're living on top of the _/actual/_ hell." He grabbed himself a pen, and a piece of paper and started writing.

Yo, Ranma,

First things first, pal. What's this? The second letter in how many months? Too slow, too little, too long. My best friend since kindergarten - the one that SURVIVED at least, you with your living hell...

Anyway, where was I? Oh, yeah, best friend, she's like this computer super genius. She got her own computer at home, hooked up to this giant global network. I saw her exchange 'e-mail', with an on-line friend of hers who lives in Europe - delivered in a few seconds, had a reply in a few minutes. I'm going to take her computer shopping for me soon, you HAVE to convince your dad or future father-in-law - heh, heh - to get one as well, so we can do this via e-mail.

On to topping; you think you've got it bad? Check this out, friend of mine.

I wrote you about MY Amazon and her mother last time didn't I? Things have happened: I slept with Buffy... I hear you; isn't that good thing?

Not if she's still in love with a demon-animated corpse, tells it you to your face, you get pissed off, start a big shouting match about betrayals and lies, and oh yeah, Willow told Buffy to back off from me if she was a real friend... she went to fess up... two best friends broken up, and no Buffy smoochies for a long while after that.

Friends back together though; not that that keeps the demons from killing us... or hiring assassins from a few-thousand-year-old assassins cult filled with the deadliest human, super-human, and demonic assassins; nine total, three of them for me. Bullets, mind control, electricity, you name, they used it to try and kill us...

One of them was human, and my friend Cordelia was forced to kill her. I broke off any potential relationship with her right after that, while she was hurting like hell over the kill, although I didn't know that. You can imagine what I inadvertently put her through, but if you think THAT was bad...

A demon beat me up to get me to marry him... I joined the Amazons to keep Lotion from doing that damn Kiss of Death on Buffy; yeah, Slayer battle instincts caught up, and she decided payback was a good idea; and oh, yeah, the Amazon goddess paid us a visit, and blessed us on top of the Hellmouth with interesting times...

But no, that's not the real bad stuff: Buffy's 17th birthday party, that's where the bad stuff started...

-----

Buffy woke up and looked around her room, wondering what had awoken her. She found a piece of paper on her nightstand that said, 'Happy Birthday.' She blinked and got out of bed, her attire a short skirt and blouse, which she only fleeting wondered about having worn to bed. She opened the door of her bedroom and stepped into the Bronze, where people were partying.

She walked onward, weaving almost as if floating between the people. "Hey."

Buffy turned to her right, and smiled. "Xander," she said and walked up to him. His chest was bare for some reason. He only wore tight jeans, and he looked yummy. She took him into her arms and vice versa, and they shared a hot, passionate kiss. They broke apart and it seemed as if he was in a blaze of light, yet her eyes didn't hurt.

"Happy Birthday, I hope," he told her with a grin.

"It will be with you in it," she answered with a smile.

Xander's face turned a little darker and he pleaded, "Please don't do it."

"Don't do what?" she asked confused, and then Xander turned away from her, turning to her left. She frowned and looked around. Then she came across another bright figure, albeit not as bright as Xander.

"Hey, Buffy," her mother greeted, lifting a cup from a saucer to her mouth.

"Mom?" she wondered, not quite understanding.

Joyce smiled and asked, "Do you think you're ready?"

"Huh?" Buffy wondered out loud and then her mother dropped the green saucer and green cup. They crashed to pieces on the ground. Buffy looked, then smiled and made to help her mother pick up the pieces.

"Oh, no, enjoy your birthday," Joyce said and made shooing motions.

Buffy turned away, and the crowd parted. From it came a bright figure. "Hello, Buffy," he spoke soulfully.

"Angel," she said with a grin, and walked up to him, planting a kiss on his lips. It was passionate, but cool as vampire kisses were wont to be. They broke apart. "So, I'm curious," Buffy said with a cheeky grin.

"Curious?" Angel asked and took a step back to take her in more fully. Buffy smiled, and then her smile vanished as she saw the vamped out face of Drusilla appear behind Angel, readying a stake. "Angel!" Buffy yelled and reached forward. The stake plunged in Angel's back, and he jerked. She reached forward, but his fingers crumbled to dust, just as she was about to touch him.

She watched in horror as Angel fell to dust, and Drusilla said, "Curiosity is what killed the kitty, and daddy's been such a bad kitty." Then the vampire vanished.

"No!" Buffy called in horror and turned around lost, her eyes falling on the bright Xander. A less bright Willow stepped next to him, and then he dimmed, becoming the same brightness as Willow. The two smiled at her, and then shared a deeply passionate kiss, before turning back to her and smiling.

Buffy sat bolt upright in her bed. "Oh, my god."

-----

"Giles!" Buffy called as she entered the library.

She looked around and noticed Jenny busy with Willow in some kind of exercise. Xander was present going through his morning Tai Chi warming up routine, with Cordelia next to him doing the same. Oz sat in a chair watching the whole proceeding with interest . . . or perhaps disinterest . . . it really was difficult to tell with the aloof guy.

"Yes?" Giles spoke as he came out of his office.

"I just had a dream where Drusilla killed Angel," Buffy said with desperation, going over to the counter. "I checked up on him, and he's fine, but . . ."

"Good Lord," Giles spoke out his concern, "if Drusilla is still alive . . ."

"We'll tackle her when we get to her," Xander said from his position.

Buffy bent around Giles and said, "The dream was so real, I've had dreams like that before . . ." Buffy shivered.

"We'll just have to be extra careful until we're sure; unless the dream told you exactly where and when we can find her," Xander answered casually.

"Xander has a rather good point, Buffy," Giles pointed out, and reset his glasses. "I will keep an eye out for signs, prophecies and anything else I might find that points to one thing either way . . . you have stopped dreams from coming true before; the rising of the master as I recall."

"Yeah, you smashed up his bones but good," Willow said with a grin at her best friend. "I remember, I was hanging upside down just before that."

Buffy couldn't forget either; it had been her hotheadedness that got Willow in that situation, and she shuddered as she forced the memory of the payback she'd received away. Buffy nodded, and said, "Yeah, can't forget that." Buffy calmed down a bit. "I guess you guys are right, but it was so real."

"I'm not saying this isn't serious, Buffy," Giles said with a serious tone, "a Slayer's dreams are often rife with omens, but a Slayer also has normal dreams, and sometimes the omens are as symbolic and un-literal as normal dreams."

"Yeah, just this other day I dreamed of you all covered in oil and feathers, but do you see yourself feathered, of course not," Cordelia remarked snidely.

Buffy narrowed her eyes at the cheerleader, trying to remember again why she'd decided to keep her secret about the whole I-killed-a-human thing. "You're not a Slayer," Buffy pointed out annoyed.

"You _/know/_ what I mean, stupid bottle blonde," Cordelia told Buffy.

Buffy and Willow gasped, then Buffy gasped again, louder. "I-I am _/not/_ a bottle blonde," Buffy said sharply, pissed off. "I use highlights, but I'm a natural blonde, dark blonde. Tell her, Xander."

Jenny's eyes widened. Giles started, "Now why would- . . ."

Cordelia cut him off though, "So you're admitting you're stupid?"

Willow broke her lotus position and rushed over to Buffy. The redhead grabbed Buffy by the shoulders, and she said, "Buffy, it's not nice to slay your friends."

Jenny injected some reason into the library by saying, "How about we leave the insults for a moment, and focus. There's classes, there's training, and there's keeping our eyes open. Hair is not a priority." Buffy and Cordelia gasped at that, directing twin looks of horror to Jenny.

Before the two could go off on a rant about the importance of hair, Giles interjected, "I believe classes start about now."

When the kids left, Giles and Jenny remained, with Giles being thoughtful. "Sneaky," Jenny said with a smile, put her arms around his waist. "We have quite some time still." She kissed him on the lips, and he half-heartedly kissed back.

Jenny broke the kiss, and asked, "Rupert? What are you thinking of that's more important then kissing me? Rupert?"

"Huh, oh," Giles answered, turning his eyes down at her, going over her words again, "I was just wondering how Xander could confirm that- . . ." He looked up in revelation, and looking straight forward, he finished, "Oh, bollocks."

Jenny gave a low moan and asked him, "Say that again."

"Say what?" Giles asked her.

Jenny grinned up at him, "Bolucks, it sounds sexy." Her attempt to recreate the word failed miserably.

-----

A dream, big deal, right? Yeah, that's what we thought... big mistake.

-----

"Unless dark blonde equals black, she's _/so/_ a bottle blonde," Cordelia muttered to herself with Oz walking to her right. The others were a few meters ahead of them.

"Snippy," Oz commented casually and softly.

"Huh?" Cordelia said turning her head to look at him.

Oz looked up at her, with a seeming neutral face, except that the sparkling in his eyes showed he was smiling. He spoke, "You're snippy this morning."

"I'm always snippy," Cordelia bit at him, and continued, "you don't get to say that, I'm never snippy, I'm sunshine itself."

"Oh, no, lately you're a whole lot worse than normal. You're even insulting them when they can't hear you, and that's far too inefficient for your normal self," Oz spoke with a grin.

"Well . . . I can be snippy if I want to," Cordelia said and looked straight ahead. Oz checked the distance between them and the other three in front of him, and suddenly grabbed Cordelia by the arm. With a quick motion he went to the right, opening a janitor's closet. As expected, Cordelia's sense of decorum made her hesitate to scream bloody murder, until after the two were in the closet. Oz closed the door and turned on the light. "Why you!" Cordelia hissed out quietly, as she didn't want her voice to be heard coming from inside a janitor's closet.

"It's the killing-a-human thing, isn't it?" Oz said with a sincere face. Cordelia's expression became less angry. Oz grabbed her waist and gently pulled her closer to him. "You're not evil, she needed to be stopped, it will be okay."

Cordelia sniffled, and then wrapped her arms around Oz, having to duck a little to get the hug better. She sobbed a bit as Oz tightened his arms all the way around Cordelia's back. After a few seconds Cordelia stopped and lifted her upper body from the guitarist. Cordelia looked at him somewhat annoyed and accused, "You're short." Oz shrugged. Cordelia added, "Have to start wearing shorter heels, or no heels at all." Oz once again shrugged, and then the cheerleader dipped forward again, except this time her lips pushed feverishly against his. Oz returned the fiery kiss, with just as much fire, despite his usually cool exterior. Their tongues dueled at first, then settled in a loving caressing rhythm that drove both wild with passion. Having forgotten any attempt at breathing, they broke apart once air became an issue. "Wow," Cordelia muttered. She and Oz had kissed before, and she had found she enjoyed his comfort quite a bit, but their sweet exploratory kisses had never been this intense, or had so much tongue involved.

"Wow, most indeed," Oz spoke, a wide contented smile on his face.

"Never felt that kissing anyone before, except Xander, but- . . ."

Cordelia was interrupted by Oz pulling her back to him, and restarting a kiss that quickly glowed white-hot, easily exceeding the first one. After they broke apart, Cordelia held on to him to keep from standing. "What?" she managed.

"I figured practice makes perfect, and I want to exceed Xander as soon as possible," Oz said still a bit dazed at the kiss himself, as his hands gently stroked Cordelia's back.

"Good thought, very good thought," Cordelia said with a lazy grin. She then schooled her face and took a step back, making Oz lower his arms back down to her waist. "I should really be upset with you, you crass individual, interrupting me like that," Cordelia said with a cool edge to her voice, then after opening the door walked off.

"You're right, I'm sorry," Oz said with an unexpected difficult cool, turning off the light and joining Cordy outside the closet.

"You should be," Cordelia said with fire growing back in her voice. She started walking to the right, Oz coming up next to her. "In fact, I should punish you for that, if only I could think of a suitable punishment."

"I will be forever in your debt, if you find it in your heart not to," Oz said, and then smirked up at Cordelia.

"You _/better/_ not be smirking at me, shorty," Cordelia shot at him.

"I don't smirk, I grin," Oz said with perfect composure and a grin. As Cordelia narrowed her eyes at him, he asked, "About Buffy's birthday party."

"Oh, yeah, where I have to bring the food," Cordelia spoke in annoyance. "Exactly why would I go to Bottle Blonde's birthday party again?"

"Dip, you just have to bring the dip," Oz corrected smoothly, then answered her question, "And you go because she's a friend you fight the forces of darkness with."

Cordelia sighed theatrically and said, "But they make me slave away on the dip."

"I'm willing to help with opening a few bags, and mixing it with water," Oz offered with a smile.

"Oh, don't bother, I have the maids working on it," Cordelia answered with a grumble and Oz nodded with a smile. This girl was amazing - she just loved to rant and rave, and he figured she earned it. "But what the hell do you get for a bottle blonde Slayer?"

"Better haircut?" Oz suggested casually walking along.

"Hmm," Cordelia muttered, and then looked down. "Have you figured out a gift yet?"

"Nope," Oz answered. "Go find one together?" Cordelia smiled.

-----

There was knocking on the door. Angel walked over to answer it. He opened the door, and did a double take. "Mrs. Summers," he said in shock, staying there rooted to the floor.

"You must be Angel," Joyce spoke with a pleasant smile that sent Angel's hackles up.

Shaking himself out of his shock with his 240-year experience, he opened the door further and said, "Come in, come in."

"Thank you," Joyce said coolly and entered his apartment, looking around the place with a skeptical look. "So, this is where you and my daughter have been . . . doing things together."

"Uh, well, n-no . . . we have not- . . ."

"Oh, I know you two haven't . . . consummated yet, Angel; but here is where the things happen that might lead up to it," Joyce said, looking around the place again, checking out the small living area with a table and a couch, a set of stairs, while one side had a small kitchen. Through a door in the back was another room; a bed showed it was the bedroom. Joyce's left eye twitched for a moment, quite displeased with the dump.

Angel was nervous as hell; he may have superior strength, but he knew not to piss of mothers, most certainly not good mothers who cared about their daughters. So he tried modest honesty, "Ah, well, yes . . . I suppose . . . I have no intention of harming your daughter in any way, Mrs. Summers."

"And yet you do," Joyce said flatly.

"Uh . . . no, I don't?" Angel return nervously.

Joyce gave a single despairing chuckle, and then took a step closer to the vampire. "You drag her into the night, you can't bring her out into the sun, you can't give her children, she's kissing a demon-animated _/corpse/_, and undoubtedly would like to do more with that corpse; and oh, yeah, you seduced her, by giving her expensive gifts and hiding in shadows from what I gathered, while teenagers who are not immortal, or had any kind of super strength back then were risking their lives to save the world fighting alongside my daughter." Joyce took a step forward and bore her eyes into Angel's eyes. The vampire gulped, just before Joyce finished, "She'll turn seventeen tomorrow, and has no idea what she'll do with the rest of her life. She's a teenager, think back to when you were one. You might not call that harming, I do."

Nervously the souled vampire gulped once again, and explained, "I don't have to bring her in the sun and give her children, Xander can do that."

"_/What/_?" Joyce spoke out sharply in disbelief and confusion.

"Oh, I thought you knew since you knew a- . . ." Angel started, then suddenly backed up in fear.

Joyce stepped forward with long sides, her face burning with anger, hissing, **"-What- -did- -I- -know-?"** Angel was pinned against the wall, Joyce right in front of him, looking up slightly to look him into the eyes.

Leaning back away from the blazing woman, Angel blurted out, "She said she didn't want to choose, that if men could have harems, she could to. I agreed; she still needs to convince Xander." The blazing anger of a righteous mother could burn brighter than the sun; did he feel any sizzling pain, see any smoke, was he burning up painfully? Luckily, no - not yet at least. With a tiny voice he added, "Please don't kill the messenger."

Joyce's eyes were narrowed and then took a step, and said with a growing prideful smile, "Actually . . . apart from you being a corpse that isn't such a bad idea at all, if she can pull it off. In fact, I'd say it's brilliantly emancipated."

Angel blinked and looked if his death had been postponed; it certainly seemed that way. "Still leaves the corpse though," Joyce said less enthusiastically, looking at Angel. "She says you love her? Is that true I wonder? More importantly, do you love her enough?"

"I broke up with her, but it didn't last, she pretty much didn't take 'no' for an answer," Angel explained.

"She'll have no other choice if you leave," Joyce pointed out calmly.

Angel shook his head, and said, "Then I can't help her, can't help them."

Joyce smiled a normal smile, and said flatly, "You _/can't/_ help her. The only ones of her friends not yet stronger than you, soon will be. Not long after that, you'll only be a hindrance."

Angel lowered his head, and Joyce said, "Ask yourself this, Angel. Do you obsess over her, do you just want to have her; or do you love her enough you'd like to see her play with her children one day? As opposed to Xander playing with the kids while she keeps her skin pale in your darkened room of the house."

Joyce then turned and walked toward the door, "I've said my piece, Angel. I will see what you decide, I hope you make the right decision soon." She opened the door and walked out, leaving Angel to brood over her words.

-----

Ah, the plot thickens, eh? Forces start to align on opposite sides; but this is all just the beginning. You see, we found that one of our dearest friends had a secret; a dark one, although there wasn't much she could have done about it.

-----

Jenny stepped into her classroom, and noticed from the corner of her eye a man sitting in one of the student benches. "I'm sorry, sir, but class starts in just a little while; if you wish to talk to me, you should come back in two hours, when I have a free period," Jenny spoke going over to her desk and readying her notes for the class.

"Have you forgotten who you are, Jana?" the man spoke and rose from his place. Jenny looked up shocked, and took the man in. He was in his fifties, wore a dark coat, had an equally dark head, and had an almost completed greying beard and mustache. "Do you think you're Jenny Calender now? Have you forgotten your responsibilities to the clan?"

"Uncle? Of course not Uncle," Jenny or Jana spoke in shock. "Angelus remains in torment from his soul."

"Does he?" the man spoke sharply, getting closer, "The old woman has seen his guilt and pain lessen. She says soon he might not feel it at all anymore. Do you call her a liar, or incompetent? This is bad, he _/must/_ retain his pain."

"Why? He is doing good here, he's helping to keep the Hellmouth locked," Jenny asked her uncle.

"Jana!" her uncle spoke with a vicious tone, "Do you think the few people he saves atones for killing our brightest most beautiful daughter? Let alone all the people who touched her life? He's a monster, and he must suffer for all eternity. We do not care about his hopes for redemption. It is not justice we serve, Jana, but vengeance."

"I know that, Uncle," Jenny answered him with annoyance, walking from behind the desk in frustration.

Her uncle turned around to continue facing her, and said, "Vengeance is not what these modern people think of it; and idea, payback. Vengeance is a living thing, it transcends generations, it commands, it kills. Vengeance must not be denied. The curse demands his pain. If he would gain true happiness even for only a single moment . . . then the soul we gave him will be taken from him." Jenny looked shocked at the revelation, "Is there anything that could have resulted in his diminished guilt?"

Jenny stopped her pacing and looked at her uncle suddenly, and told him, "There's a girl, the Slayer."

"You didn't keep them apart?" her uncle demanded.

Jenny looked back to the exit to make sure the students hadn't arrived yet, and answered, "Yes, no. She's in love with a boy, they've shared intimacy. Her love for Angelus is waning, she knows he isn't right for him . . . there shouldn't be . . ."

Her uncle stepped very close to her, "Make _/sure/_ they stay apart."

"I will, uncle," Jenny answered.

-----

Early morning, next day

Yawning Buffy entered the kitchen, where she found her mother. "Buffy," Joyce spoke with a big smile. She went over to her daughter, shook her hand, and hugged her close. "Happy birthday. Seventeen years. Wow."

"Thanks, mom," Buffy said with a smile and then they broke apart. Buffy looked at the table and noticed the candles, several cards were around her plate, next to which was a pile of steaming pancakes on a plate. "I knew I smelled something delicious."

"Your favorite," Joyce said with a smile as Buffy wrapped herself in her arms once more, thanking her.

Buffy then quickly sat back down, and opened the first card as her mother sat next to her, and took a pancake for herself. "From Dad!" Buffy said with a huge smile. Joyce nodded. "Fifty dollars too; 'Happy birthday, Buffy. I love you; I wish I could be there, so money will have to do instead of a gift. I'll visit as soon as I can, love dad.'" Buffy turned her head to her mother, and said, "A better gift I can't imagine coming from dad, he'd probably buy me a big teddy bear or something."

Joyce smiled at her daughter, and said, "You'll always be his little girl."

"And I'll milk that for all it's worth," Buffy returned with a smirk, and Joyce laughed.

"Did you like spending summer with your father?" Joyce asked Buffy. She finished putting strawberry jam on it, and then started to eat it.

Buffy nodded, "Apart from the big ol' Master depression."

"Yeah, your father was worried about you when he dropped you off," Joyce said remembering. "I should have seen what was going on with you a long time ago, and him too."

"Oh, mom," Buffy said with a lower voice. "Don't beat yourself up over it. Nobody else sees the darkness; it isn't like you saw nothing where everyone else does. I should have trusted you and dad with the whole gig, and just shown you in person; it isn't like you can deny I have super strength and put me in an asylum after I've tossed you two over my shoulders and marched you off to the cemetery to dust a vamp right in front of your eyes."

Joyce chuckled, and said, "I think during the marching I'd be worried about what the neighbors would say." The two Summers women laughed hard together.

"You proved you can handle this whole thing, mom. I so often wished I had the guts to trust you with it; so often I didn't know what to do, and I just wished I could come to you or dad for advice. You're the best mom ever, and my friends parents prove that's not a exaggeration," Buffy said with a sad smile. Buffy hugged her mother again and held tight. "Of course, then we might not have moved here, and I wouldn't have met Xander and Willow, Giles, and strangely enough Cordelia . . ."

"Not Lotion?" Joyce asked playing devil's advocate, and breaking the hug.

"Nope, definitely not a problem not meeting the girl that beat me up several times and whose goddess jinxed me for all eternity," Buffy answered and then grinned.

Joyce smiled back. She frowned, "Goddess?"

"Yeah, I hadn't told you that yet? The Amazon goddess decided to welcome us in the tribe during the ritual, like seriously wigging worthy, especially since Deo and Lotion didn't know either," Buffy said, while her mother looked at her with wonder. Buffy proceeded with opening the cards. Several uncles and aunts from both sides of the family had sent their cards as well. Buffy smiled and then took her first pancake, and gobbled it up quickly. Joyce started eating her next pancake, and Buffy took another one also.

In no time at all Buffy had eaten the pile of pancakes away, and gave a satisfied, "Aah, that was delicious, mom." Her mother looked perturbed at the empty plate. Buffy smiled, and said, "Slayer appetite, I burn a lot of energy. I don't have to hold it back from you anymore."

"I suppose not," Joyce said, and then grinned, "I just hope you don't eat through our mortgage payments." Buffy smiled sheepishly. "Which means we come to my present; I'm afraid that, like your dad, I couldn't come up with anything as a gift except the corny. I wish I knew what a seventeen-year-old these days would want."

"I know, you said last year we could talk about it in a year," Buffy said with enthusiasm. "A licensed driver needs something to drive."

Joyce's smile faltered a little. Concerned she got up, taking her plate with her, and when she reached the kitchen sink she asked, "Do you think you're ready, Buffy?"

Buffy's eyes widened, almost hearing her mother asking the question in a double voice, here . . . and in the dream. "What did you say?" she asked quickly.

"I said," Joyce said, turning back to face Buffy, bringing the plate along. It slipped over the incline at the end, and Joyce lost her grip on the plate as she said, "Do you think you're ready?" With a loud noise the plate shattered.

Buffy looked at the shattered plate on the floor, piece of it still flying around with abject horror. The sound had seemed horrifyingly loud, almost deafening. Her gaze stayed locked on the pieces of the plate, as Joyce said with annoyance, "Oh, shoot."

Her mother's words jarred Buffy from her shock. She looked at her mother terrified for a moment, and then bolted from the kitchen and the house. "Buffy?" Joyce called after her, glimpsing the terror on her daughter's face. She contemplated going after her, but decided against it.

-----

Buffy barged into the school at full gallop. Much faster now than months before, she almost slammed into people. "Sorry," she said hastily as she barely maneuvered around a girl.

"Hey, Buffy!" Buffy ignored the call and barged into the library.

"Giles!" she called out worried.

Giles appeared from behind a book case, reading a book. "Hmm?"

"It happened, just like in the dream!" Buffy called out, as behind her Willow in a pair of tight jeans and a green tight top and Lexa in a short black skirt and red top entered behind her.

"What happened?" Giles asked for clarification.

"Mom dropped something, it shattered - the same thing happened in the dream, and she said the exact same thing for real as in the dream! It's starting to come true!" Buffy almost yelled fearfully.

"Well," Giles said and paused for a moment, "I suppose that means we need to step up our efforts at figuring out this dream. I suggest Buffy, that we start with sitting down, and you write down the dream in as vivid a detail as you can manage." Buffy nodded enthusiastically, at same time dreading reliving the dream in her imagination, and went over to a library table. Giles came down from the second level to start searching through the ledger for books he might need.

When Buffy was almost to her destination, Willow called out, "Buffy!" She and Lexa quickly walked over, and Buffy turned around. "I know this doesn't exactly sound as nice now but, happy birthday!" Willow hugged Buffy close, and Buffy hugged back.

"Thanks anyway, Willow," Buffy said heartfelt, and broke away, managing a weak smile.

"Ack!" Buffy exclaimed as Lexa put her in a tight bear hug.

"Happy birthday, Buff," Lexa told the Slayer. Buffy still hadn't quite gotten use to 'Buff' coming from a female voice, but she was glad she could hear it now. Lexa broke-the-crushing-but-satisfying-to-both-girls hug, and she said, "I didn't bring any presents to school because I figured Snyder would just take it away from you. I'll come by later with them."

"Presents?" Buffy asked, perking up a bit despite the dire situation.

"Sure, and don't forget, we're here to help with the pesky Slayer dream. Don't worry, we'll beat it, as usual," Lexa reassured Buffy with a grin.

Buffy smiled and relaxed a bit. Then she hugged both of them, and said, "What would I do without you guys?"

-----

So we did more research, and decided to have the party anyway. After all, we'd be in danger more often, so if we start to stop the parties, we'd never have them again, eh? Party might loosen us up, and recharge our batteries, allowing us geniuses to save the day. Buffy went home for her birthday dinner, and we left to go to the site of the party - a nice warehouse Giles managed to rent for the occasion - leaving Jenny behind to get Buffy to us. All well and done, once Buffy had had her dinner and was off to school, her mother joined us quickly. Now all we had to do was wait for Buffy...

-----

The warehouse was filled with a nice 'Happy Birthday' banner, as well as a pool table and a second table full of treats. Xander and Willow had come together, as had Oz and Cordelia who were getting more and more into each other. Giles, Joyce, Lotion, and Angel were present too, and all had found places to hide: under tables, under sheets. Angel was standing behind a pillar, and listening to sounds coming from outside. There were some footsteps, the sound of an engine running and being turned off.

Then he heard something he couldn't figure out why anyone would say that. "Why is it that whenever I see you, you're stealing something? You really need to have that looked after."

He could swear it was Buffy, but the warehouse had a solid steel wall, so even with his vampiric hearing it was difficult to make out the voice. Following were sounds of battle. "There's something wrong," Angel said with some surprise.

Willow, with her makeup expertly done, but her hair barely touched, spoke with a little annoyance, "She'll be here-"

The windows in the front of the warehouse shattered and three vampires came flying through it, landing on their backs and asses. The whole group got up from their positions and watched as Buffy somersaulted in after them, and staked two at once with the stakes she held in both of her hands. With a quick maneuver the remaining vamp was up and ready to flee, but Buffy kicked him back. A moment later he was dust as well.

Angel took a few steps to Buffy in disbelief, and the Slayer turned to him, stakes at the ready. She stopped her movements just in time. "Angel! What are you . . .?" Buffy trailed off and took in the surprise party. Buffy blinked once, and then smiled, "Oh, did you guys do this for me?"

"Surprise," Xander remarked dryly, dropping a piece of something he's absentmindedly found in the old warehouse.

Jenny came walking in holding a heavy crooked box. "Somebody help me? They dropped this," she said as she walked over.

Angel quickly took the box and placed it on an empty free table in front of the pool table. "What is it?" Joyce asked confused.

"Well, you can open it, here's a lock," Buffy said with a confused look. She flipped the lock, and then slowly opened the box, everyone leaning to look as best as they could. Inside lay an armor-clad arm. "Huh?" Buffy muttered. Suddenly the arm moved and grabbed her by the throat, squeezing. "Agh!" Buffy exclaimed, as she grabbed the arm and tried to rip it free.

"Buffy!" many of them called with concern. Angel grabbed the arm but it wouldn't budge. A moment later Xander lent a hand, and the arm immediately let go at his grip, squirming in pain. As Buffy coughed for air, Xander and Angel pushed the arm back in its box, then Giles slammed it shut and locked it.

"What is that?" Buffy sputtered out.

"It looked like an arm," Oz remarked coolly.

"Can you say something less obvious as well?" Lotion questioned the smaller guitar player.

"She couldn't have, she couldn't have," Angel muttered in shock.

"Angel?" Joyce asked the man with a frown. "What do you think it is?"

"The Judge," Angel said softly in shock; it really couldn't be anything else.

"Oh, my," Giles said, being familiar with the demon. He wasn't fully versed on him, but he knew it was really bad. "And this is him."

"Not all of him," Angel answered.

"Uh, that's nice, but the Judge of what? Undoubtedly not fashion sense," Cordelia pipped up in annoyance, wrapping her arms around her chest.

"What she means to say is; dish out the info already," Xander clarified with some annoyance at Angel.

Giles turned to Xander and said, "The Judge was a very powerful demon. No weapon could kill him, am I correct?"

Angel nodded, and said, "It's before my time, but from what I was told the Judge was a demon brought forth to separate the wicked from the righteous, and burn down the righteous. No weapon forged by man could stop him, and they sent an army after him. Most of them didn't return."

"They couldn't kill him," Giles said looking down at the arm in dread.

Angel nodded, and explained further, "They managed to dismember him though, and sent the pieces to all the corners of the Earth."

"And now the pieces are being brought here," Joyce muttered, shocked, and in dread. Having learned of her daughter's night job was one thing, being suddenly part of it was another thing altogether.

"Drusilla, those were Spike's men outside," Buffy said with blazing eyes, taking a step closer to the group.

"I can't believe she'd bring forth Armageddon," Angel said more than a little shocked.

"Right," Xander remarked sarcastically, "that with there being all these psychiatric hospitals for vamps and she checked herself in."

"Well, we got this one now," Giles said with some authority, "and we need to get it as far away from here as we can."

"Angel, you need to do that," Jenny spoke up resolutely.

Buffy looked up and said, "What about me?"

"You're going to skip town for a few months?" Jenny asked her.

Joyce pointed out with finality at that opportunity, "She most certainly will not."

"Jenny's right, Buffy," Angel said with finality, thinking he had an easy way out to boot. "They must never be able to reassemble the judge. While I take this far away, which will take me several months, you guys need to stop Drusilla and Spike."

"When?" Buffy asked.

"Tonight," Angel said, with all of them looking at him. "As soon as possible."

-----

"You lost it?" Drusilla crowed out with distaste. Dalton, the glasses wearing vampire, had returned to the lair empty handed. Behind the crazy vampire sat Spike in his wheelchair, leaning his head on his right hand, looking bored.

"It was the Slayer, she came out of nowhere," Dalton explained.

"We can't have that, mate," Spike drawled disinterested. "Without her present, Dru can't have her fun.

Drusilla made a childish growling sound, and made her right hand in a double hook. "I-It won't happen again," Dalton tried.

"Not good. Present would make mummy happy, and now I'm all bummed," she said, and took the glasses away. She let them drop to the ground and crushed them underneath her foot. "That was in the way, can't make nice caves."

"I-I'll get it back," Dalton quickly said, afraid of the insane one.

"Dru," Spike called from his wheelchair, "you might want to give him a chance to get it back. Dalton may be a bit on the stiff side, but he's the only one we've got with half a brain. If he fails, you can eat his entrails for all I care."

"Ruaw," Drusilla said playfully to Dalton, and then made gestures. The brainiac quickly nodded and then ran off.

-----

Later, at the Sunnydale docks

Angel and Buffy walked along the docks, Angel holding the box with the arm in it on his right shoulder. "So, when do you think you'll be back?" Buffy asked her boyfriend.

Angel warred with himself. The easiest thing to do would be to lie; to tell her he'd be back in a few months, and then just never return. She'd worry, she'd hurt, but she'd move on with her human loved one and live a happy life, because he and Buffy's mother were correct. But no, that would be the easy way out, the coward's way out, the way out the guy hiding in the shadows last year would take. Not anymore though, he'd been enough of a coward, watching in the shadows while mortal teenagers risked their lives to save, among other things, his immortal ass. It was time for a bolder path. He placed the box aside as they reached the ship. "I don't think I'm coming back, whatever happens," Angel spoke with pain in his voice.

Buffy looked up at him shocked, "What? No."

"Buffy," Angel interrupted her and took her hands, "I think you know just as well as I do, that this can't be. It was a nice fantasy while it lasted, but- . . ."

Tears fell from Buffy's eyes, and she said, "No, please, I love you."

"I love you too, but there is someone else much better suited for you waiting. I'd share you with anyone worthy if that's what it took, Buffy, and he's worthy, but we're not right for each other; you know that as well as I do," Angel said slowly, and a tearful Buffy nodded with extreme pain. He then reached in the pocket of his duster and produced a ring. Buffy looked at it confused. "This is a Claddagh ring, my people - before I was changed - gave this to someone as a sign of devotion," he said in explanation holding the ring out for her to see. It had a crown, a heart opposite it, and hands in the middle. "The hands are for friendship, the crown for loyalty, and the heart . . . well, you know."

Buffy looked even more confused and still silently sobbing at Angel. "Wear it with the heart toward you, and it means you belong to someone; wear it the other way around, it means you have an eternal devoted friend, and your heart is still open, like this," Angel finished lifting his right hand and showing a claddagh ring with the heart outward on his middle finger. "I'm devoted to you always, Buffy. Wherever I settle down to continue the fight there, I'll send you all my contact information; just in case you ever need an able-bodied fighter. I'll be here as soon as I can after you call."

As Angel put the ring on Buffy's finger symbolizing friendship, Buffy said with trembling lips, "So, this is really it, huh?"

Angel nodded, and then two vampires from out of nowhere barreled into Buffy and kept running. "Buffy!" Angel yelled watching as the vamps lifted Buffy's feet off the ground so she didn't have any leverage.

She managed out a strangled, "HEY!" But the distance to the dock's edge was too short; before she could do anything else, Slayer and two vampires dropped down to the water.

Another two vamps jumped from behind a few crates and slammed feet first into Angel, who staggered back. Just as Buffy managed to dust a vampire a moment before she and the remaining one slammed into the water, another vamp zipped across the docks, grabbed the box and ran.

"Buffy!" Angel yelled in frustration, beating aside one vampire. The other one knocked him back with a right cross. Angel blocked the vampire's next punch, pulled a stake from his coat and slammed it home. The vampire dusted, and Angel turned to the other one, who ran off after the vampire that had taken the box. "Damn it!" Angel hissed, and walked to the water side.

"Buffy!" he called out, and then the Slayer broke the surface. "The vamps?"

"Dust! The box?" Buffy returned.

"They got it," Angel said with guilt in his voice.

"DAMN IT!"

-----

Oh, yeah, they got away alright! Box gone, and insane Drusilla having another part to her collection. Are you starting to get yet what I mean with things going bad, Ranma? Well, you ain't seen nothing yet, pal. In a surprise turn of events, Joyce decided she was going to help with the researching; demanding it as a motherly right. Of course the only thing we found was 'can't be killed, took an army', it started to get old really quickly. Anyway, Buffy fell asleep, and had herself a nice prophetic dream, which she woke from a few minutes later. That is where things went really, really, really bad...

-----

"I know where Drusilla is," Buffy announced after blinking the sleep from her eyes.

"You do?" Jenny asked a little surprised. The rest gathered around.

"She's in a factory," Buffy said with a grunt, stretching to get the sleep out of her. "Have you guys identified any places they may bring the boxes in yet?"

Willow placed a stack of papers in front of Buffy. "Good," Buffy said with a smile. "Here's the plan. I take Angel to the factory and scout out the place; see if there's any traps, how many we've got against us, and how far they are with Mr. Judgmental. You guys go check out this stuff, and see if you can find anymore pieces and get them out of there, okay?"

"No," Xander said concerned, and everyone looked at him. "Buff, I think it's better I go with you, or both of you to the factory. I know you're much closer to me now, but I'm still stronger than you are, more skilled than you are, but more importantly I'm a _/lot/_ stronger than Mr. Life-challenged over there."

Buffy got up and walked over to Xander, and placed her left hand against his flat belly. Joyce was a little surprised her daughter was showing the affection right in front of her, even if she did know the deal. "Xan, trust me, me and Angel can handle this, we'll get back. Angel isn't human; this thing can suck your humanity right out of you and burn you down, he'll undoubtedly last longer," Buffy said with deep concern. "I'm the Slayer, so I think I'll have some protection; if he is assembled. So let me keep you out of the way of icky sucky judges okay?"

Damn, how could he deny her now? Especially with those big, beautiful, blue puppy eyes. He sighed, and said, "Okay, fine."

"Thank you," Buffy said with a big smile, and planted a kiss right on his mouth. Lotion's eyes twitched, Willow smiled.

"Buffy," Joyce said with a little admonishment, although she had a smile on her face. It was obvious who Joyce favored to be Buffy's boyfriend.

Buffy blushed when she remembered her mom was here, so she quickly broke apart from Xander and took Angel along.

-----

"Oh, goody!" Drusilla squealed, and jumped up like a child in a candy store.

"Just a little more patience, luv," Spike said, as they and the other vampires looked at the spectacle. Multiple boxes had been placed together. "Only one missing," Spike said, as the head box was slowly moved over by a rope. In the back Dalton took a final look at the construction, and deciding it was best to be somewhere else, he slipped out. The head box was placed on top, and there was a light between it and the other boxes where they met. Then two doors opened, and inside stood a blue-skinned demon with several small horns. It was big and muscular.

"Ooh, he's gorgeous, Spikey," Drusilla said in admiration.

"Who," the Judge began with a heavy voice, "has awakened me?"

"That would be us there, friend," Spike drawled as the Judge came walking forward.

"You?" he asked and looked from him to Drusilla. He gave a disgusted sound, and said, "You two reek of humanity. You share . . . affection."

"Hey, watch it," Spike said wheeling forward and placing a warning finger against the Judge's armor, "we are the ones who got you out of there you know, we could put you back in."

"Is there anything you need?" Drusilla asked with large shiny eyes.

"A . . . meal, someone with humanity, to replenish my powers," the Judge said with steadily but slowly.

"Anyone here, you can take," Drusilla said with a happy face.

The vampires suddenly looked at each other. "Him, he reads something called comics, bring him to me," the Judge said with finality.

"What?" the fledgling said, as the other vamps grabbed him, glad it wasn't them.

"I thought you could just zap 'em?" Spike asked somewhat annoyed as the Judge stretched out his hand to the meal that was being brought to him, a meal that futilely struggled against the numbers holding him.

"I am still weak, once I have replenished my powers, I will be able to feed from a distance," the Judge said and then placed his hand on the comic-reading vampire. The vampire screamed as fire started around the Judge's hand, and spread around his body, the fire being drawn into the Judge. The Judge made a savoring sound and a moment later the vampire was nothing but a charcoaled form, which then crumbled and dropped to the floor, only to disappear completely. The Judge took a deep breath through his nose, and said, "Ah, I can feel myself growing stronger."

-----

Buffy and Angel snuck onto the upper level of the factory, which consisted only of walkways, that probably wouldn't have passed an inspection back then, let alone now. Narrow wooden gangplanks and poorly erected metal railing were the only things keeping them from falling down.

They peered over the railing and saw the vampires partying, and there, in the corner, underneath a large collection of television sets and other metal and electronics, stood the judge. Blue, imposing, large, virtually indestructible, and very, very deadly.

"Damn," Buffy whispered with dread. "He's already assembled."

"If we have a way to strike, we better do it fast," Angel whispered back, looking with morbid fascination at the powerful demon. "He's probably still weak from all that time in pieces."

Buffy nodded, trying to think of a quick and very deadly attack they could do right now, even with their lack of resources. Unfortunately for them, the Judge had other plans - or rather a very good nose. He sniffed twice, and then looked up, straight at Buffy and Angel. "Damn," Buffy said, as all the vampires turned as one to where the Judge was looking.

"Get them," Spike ordered, and the vampires moved.

Buffy and Angel got up to leave, but there had obviously been some vamps unseen much closer to them, because suddenly several vamps came at them; from the pathways crossing their own, as well as the side entrances, one of which they had used themselves earlier.

Angel attacked the vamp on the right, while Buffy sent another tumbling over the railing with a single solid kick. She whirled around, pulled a stake and dusted another one. While Angel had trouble with his own, Buffy grabbed the railing as many more vampires came at them, some from below. With a rapid twist, she turned herself around, letting the railing go with one hand, and then grabbing it again later. Thus she made an easy arc, and with her feet out, six vamps were sent flying away. Her primary target was Angel's opponent though, and he too got slammed in the head. He staggered back as Buffy landed between him and Angel. A quick move later and the vamp turned to dust.

"Let's go," Angel said, grabbing Buffy by the arm and pulling her the other way, as the vamps she had kicked away started to return.

Buffy looked back at the Judge, and suddenly realized something. "Wait a moment," Buffy said, ignoring the advancing vamps. She broke free of Angel's desperate hold, tore lose a piece of the railing, and then tossed it like a spear. The makeshift javelin shot across the factory hall, and slammed somewhere just above the tv sets. The electronics sparked as the wall of tv sets wobbled and creaked, and then the whole wall came tumbling down, right smack on top the judge.

Smiling with satisfaction, she let herself be dragged out by Angel.

Down below Drusilla gave a disappointed whimper, while Spike sighed and said, "Somebody start digging him out."

-----

Buffy and Angel fled through the torrential downpour. They were soaked to the bone in less than a minute, and it took them many more to reach Angel's apartment. The vampire led Buffy inside, and Buffy pulled off her soaked shirt, placing it on the central heating to dry. Angel followed suit with his own clothes, until they were both dressed only in their underwear, the rest of their clothes drying.

Buffy breathed heavily, as she took in the semi-naked Angel. She took a step closer to him, feeling her arousal. It had been a quick but intense fight, and Buffy had always gotten a slight arousal from her fights; it had to be a Slayer thing. Curiosity entered her mind alongside a little hope. If Angel didn't go now, perhaps he could stay, perhaps she could have both anyhow. But if Xander forced a decision; she needed to know, didn't she? She suddenly kissed him, as she gently turned him toward the bedroom.

"Buffy," Angel managed breathlessly, trying not to give into his own urges, "We can't do this; I'm not staying remember."

"Shh, we'll handle that later, right now is just now. Don't think," Buffy whispered as she pulled him along. They came past a closet just to the right of the bedroom, and Angel opened it with one hand, fishing a few towels from the place. They dried each other off on the way to the bed, kissing constantly, and then fell on the bed.

"You certain?" Angel asked.

"Very," Buffy replied, and pressed against him, stroking his cool body, while his fingers moved over her heated one.

"Oh, Buffy," he muttered between kisses and turned her over, so he was on top. He kissed down her neck to her breasts, much to Buffy's delight. He kneaded them, kissed and licked them. Buffy moaned, and he went further down. Worshiping her belly button for a while, he then raised back up, covering her fully with his body. He kissed her on the mouth, while stroking her body with his hands, already aware of his painfully straining member.

He moved between her legs, and gently slid in. "Oh, god," he moaned, and then kissed her again. Buffy, for her part frowned for a moment, but with both their eyes closed he didn't see that. Their bodies undulated, working together. Buffy's hands were around his back as Angel steadily increased the tempo. Having found a good speed he continued, kissing Buffy deeper, while his hands explored her body, her breasts. Minutes passed as Angel made love to Buffy, and he came closer to his completion.

"Oh, Buffy, I'm gonna . . . I'm gonna . . ." Angel said, restraining himself.

"Me too, me too," Buffy whispered in his ear. "Go on, Angel, do it," she groaned. Angel sped up his pace, Buffy along with him, increasing the tempo of her counter pumps, and the pitch of her moans.

Finally with a low groan Angel came, shooting his dead seed in the teenager's moist passage. Buffy moaned out, give a quick shriek, and then Angel collapsed gently on her. "Hmm," Buffy said, and gently turned Angel over on his back, lying against him.

"That was amazing," Angel muttered, and Buffy gave him a nod.

Buffy peeked out from her eyes, and as her heart hammered in her throat she noticed Angel closing his eyes. After a few moments, she turned away from Angel, faking a lazy, sleepy turn. She opened her eyes, and then closed them again, breathing deeply. She eased her breathing steadily, thanking Xander for mediation techniques; as she steadily slowed her fearfully pounding heart. This way she them found sleep quickly.

A few minutes later, Angel suddenly gasped, and stumbled out of bed with the pain he unexpectedly felt. Disoriented, he looked around, stumbling, falling to his knees. "Buffy?" he whispered confused and afraid, finding a way to stagger onward. "What's happening?" Angel said slowly, continuing onward and knowing not why. Naked he staggered out of the apartment into the alley behind, and the still pouring rain. He staggered a few meters, before falling to his knees. "Buffy," he groaned out one last time as his eyes glowed orange.

-----

You paid attention to the part where Jenny's uncle arrived? Then you've guessed right, Ranma. The unthinkable happened, okay, actually it would be a I-told-you-so moment for me, but you know what I mean. Of course, just because the most horror-inducing event in the world happened, and a large load of bad stuff because of that, doesn't mean the Judge is going to give up killing all of humanity.


	24. part 24

----24---- 

Buffy opened her eyes, and looked around herself skittishly. The moment she realized Angel wasn't in bed anymore, she sighed with relief and bolted out of bed. She quickly went into the other room, and put her relatively dry clothes back on. She then opened the door, and ran out, as fast as she could.

-----

Buffy made a beeline to school, running through the early morning sun. With her Slayer speed, it didn't take her long to reach the school. She barged into the still empty building, and banged through the library doors, and skidded to a halt.

"Buffy!" Xander exclaimed happily, as the rest made similar sounds.

Buffy quickly scanned the room, realizing suddenly who would be here, but then came to a relieved realization that her mom wasn't here - a moment later the relief switched to concern. "Where have you been? We've been looking all over," Willow asked with relief.

"Uh, hiding . . . while fleeing, the Judge is active. Mom?" Buffy asked concerned, while keeping a tight grip on the emotions boiling inside her.

"I thought it prudent to send her home," Giles spoke with a measured tone, as Jenny grabbed his waist obviously to both lend share relief and get some comfort. "Your mother may be an amazing mother and housewife, I'm afraid when it comes to slaying or researching she's a bit below adequate. Angel?"

"Uh, we got separated, I'm certain he's fine though," Buffy said. Which was technically true, they got separated as she bolted out the door like a classic case of male fuck and get gone. He was most likely still in the shower expecting a sleepy but satisfied Buffy to greet him as he returned - a wave of guilt washed over her. "No need to go look for him, he'll call soon . . . I suppose we go looking for a way to destroy this Judge thing."

"I suppose we do," Giles said, with a pained voice and then turned to ones that trusted him to help come up with a solution. "Heavy research time," Giles said, frowning at how bad things had gotten.

Buffy frowned herself, pain filtering for a moment across her face, and she said, "Giles, I'd like to borrow Willow for a bit, if you don't mind." Buffy didn't wait for an answer, simply grabbed Willow by the arm and started dragging her off.

"Y-yes, well . . ." Giles managed before he turned to the remaining ones. Jenny, Xander, Lotion, Cordelia and Oz. "Research, start getting out the books people, we have a long day ahead of us.

"Or a short one," Cordelia commented with annoyance as she got up and started moving to the back to get books. She blew a hair away from her face, hating how the night of no sleep had ruined her hair, and no doubt complexion - she hoped she had heavy duty make-up with her to cover the bags under her eyes she undoubtedly had.

-----

Buffy pulled Willow along and then up the stairs. Halfway to the mid point Buffy sat down, and Willow slowed as well. "Foo, what is so important, you almost pulled my arm out?" Willow asked concerned, and sat down. Her clothes were crumpled, and her hair was a mess; another victim of the Hellmouth.

Buffy hesitated for a moment, gripping her knees with the intensity of her emotions. Then she turned her head to face Willow, and with a single tear escaping from her left eye, she told Willow, "I had sex with Angel."

"Oh! Ooh . . ." Willow started enthusiastically, before the still pained face of Buffy overrode her original excitement of the big step. "I take it didn't go so well?" she tried with a small voice.

Buffy sighed, sucked something non-existent in, and then several more tears sprung from her eyes. "Oh, god," she sobbed, out, and Willow wrapped her arms around her best friend quickly. Breaking down, Buffy returned the hug and cried on Willow's shoulder for a good twenty seconds. She came back to herself, sniffing, and said, "Thanks."

"So what happened?" Willow asked softly.

Buffy sniffed, gathered up the courage to say it, and said, "Angel's a corpse - a demon-animated corpse."

"Well . . . yeah, we knew that, didn't we?" Willow asked confused.

Buffy sobbed, and gave herself two disparaging laughs. "I knew that, I just didn't _/know/_ that," Buffy said, feeling hollow inside. It hurt as she expounded, "I never quite grasped that." She sniffed deeply again, "Corpse, body. I just ignored the cool lips; even took thrills in them you know; look at me, I can be all huggy and kissy with my supposed enemy." Buffy stayed silent for a moment, a teary eyed Willow continuing to hold. "But with the sex, definitely not ignorable, especially having had the real thing. With Xander - and I'm sorry to bring it up . . ."

"Don't worry," Willow whimpered, crying along with Buffy, feeling her pain and sadness.

"There was heat, and passion, and sweat, and everything was . . . like this powerful unstoppable . . . volcano erupting, you know?" Buffy whispered, and she choked again, making a hiccup. "He was cold, Will, cold and clammy. And there was no good sweat smell, I didn't fell his heart pounding, I didn't feel his blood beating through his veins with passion for me. There was just . . . nothing there . . . nothing but a corpse, and all I could think was, yuck, eew, yieh."

Willow saw the pain in Buffy's eyes, and whispered, "Oh, Buffy."

Buffy broke down in crying sobs again, hugging Willow tighter. The witch hugged back, and decided to keep the pain of Buffy's slayer strength squeezing a bit too hard to herself. Buffy cried on Willow's shoulder, inside a maelstrom of emotions. Willow made soothing noises, hugging Buffy closer as she went through her ordeal Slowly she resurfaced, taking her breath made her nose sound like a mud-sucking machine. She lifted her face off of Willow's wet shoulder, and said, "I faked my orgasm to get it over with, Will." Willow's eyes went wide. Buffy gave herself a few hysterical laughs, and said, "I always told myself I wouldn't do that. Now the guy I was so sure I was eternally in love with only a few months ago and . . . I willed myself to sleep afterwards. When I awoke I didn't see him, so I dressed and ran as fast as I could here. What do I do, Will? I don't know what to do?"

"Buffy," Willow said with sadness and pulled Buffy tighter into the embrace.

"It isn't fair. I love him, and the only thing I get now when I think of him is yieh," Buffy muttered. "I mean, I get it, I _/really/_ get it, I don't think there is anyone who gets it as good as I do; he's a corpse, not made for loving." Buffy shuddered, shaking her head. Then she made a warding off gesture with her ride hand, as if pushing something aside to her right, and with a disgusted face she said, "There's absolutely no way I ever want to have anything . . . physical to do with him ever again."

"You'll . . . have to break up with him," Willow said with a sad smile.

"What?" Buffy asked pained, tears still flowing from her eyes, looking at Willow. "Hey, Angel, you can't get my engine going, in fact you can't even get it revving, so I'm dumping you?"

"Well . . . yeah," Willow said, hugging Buffy closer who looked at her surprised, "but with a bit more tact and euphemisms, I'm sure he would understand, I mean he broke up with you for those very reasons before."

Buffy sighed, calming down a bit, but still painfully said, "Yeah, he broke up with me again last night; said he wouldn't be coming back once he hid the arm."

"There, see," Willow said, and gave Buffy a soothing kiss on her forehead, on her scruffy hair. Willow was always curious, and now no less so, so she asked, "What do you think would have happened if you . . . well . . . hadn't had Xander?"

To Willow's shock, Buffy broke down and cried against her now soaked shoulder again. With several deep sniffs Buffy, forced herself to speak, "That's the other thing . . . part of me likes to think it would be the same, but . . . I managed to delude myself and even pat myself on the back with the cold lips, and heew . . ." Buffy tensed, shuddering in disgust, still holding on to Willow who hugged back. The Slayer finished, "What was I _/thinking/_?"

"Love makes blind, Buffy," Willow said, tightening her arms.

Buffy brought her head up, and blinked at Willow. Willow looked surprised as Buffy's eyes flooded with relief. Buffy then smiled a defeated smiled and said, "Well, thank god it didn't make me touchless and smelless."

"I have to break up with him," Buffy said suddenly, looking into Willow's eyes. "Like today, like as soon as possible. I can't be thinking about how to do this, and how Angel'll react while battling the deadliest, most unkillable, most dangerous demon we've ever faced . . . but first I need a shower." Then she looked at Willow, with pain in her eyes, and said as tears started to form again, "After I spend some more time crying with you, okay?" Willow nodded and enveloped her friend back into the hug. Sniffing, and sobbing, Buffy muttered, "It's just not fair. Why did Angel have to be a vampire?"

"I don't know, Buffy," Willow muttered, her own tears running down her cheek again. "I don't know."

-----

Yep, a triumph for mankind, wrapped in a disgusting act. Of course, at the time I didn't know this, at the time I was still blissfully unaware doing research on the unkillable one. Willow returned and told us Buffy had gone home to reassure her mother and get a shower; then she'd be back. She didn't mention the detour she'd be making.

-----

"So," Spike started wheeling up to Drusilla in their factory hideout, "Blue Boy is back up and about I see?"

"Nasty Slayer dropping all those tvs," Drusilla grumbled.

"Yeah, say Dru, you wouldn't happen to have any clue what peaches and the Slayer are up to, do you?" Spike asked her casually.

A voice sounded from behind several tubes somewhere, coming closer, "I don't know about her, but him, he'll take up acting on Broadway under rave reviews, while at night he continues his crusade against the darkness, for as long as evil is . . . well, rolls the streets I shall be ever vigilant." Angel finally came into view, clearing his path into the main hall. He grinned evilly at Spike, while Drusilla stood behind Spike watching with wide eyes.

"You really don't give up, do you?" Spike asked with a large smirk.

"Nope, you better keep an eye on your back, Spikey," Angel said, while his smirk didn't once waver.

Spike grinned, and said, "Yeah, about keeping an eye on your back." Spike pointed behind Angel. Angel turned around and there was the Judge, who placed a hand against his chest. "Feel it burning, Angel?"

After a moment he turned his head, and told Spike, "Well, it kinda tickles. Perhaps he's broken?"

"What are you waiting for? Burn him already!" Spike ordered the Judge.

"I cannot," the Judge said, taking his hand away.

"Whot?" Spike exclaimed in surprise, Drusilla behind him looked in wonder.

"He is clean, there is no humanity in this one," the Judge intoned with finality, and then turned away.

Angel snickered, and looking at Spike and Dru he said, "I couldn't have said it better myself."

"Angel? Is that really you, old buddy? The non-soul-having mayhem-loving version I mean?" Spike said with enthusiasm.

"Yeah, it's me, Spikey," Angel said with a grin walking over and ducking a bit to be with level eyes.

"Angel!" Drusilla exclaimed with happiness, running over to him, and wrapping him in a hug. "You're back, daddy."

"Oh, yeah, Dru, I'm back," Angel said with a grin, hugging back for a moment. "Listen, whatever you're planning, postpone it for a night."

"Why?" Spike asked calmly.

"Well, you see, Spike, that bitch made me feel human, and you just don't forgive that," Angel said with an evil grin. "I want to have some payback first, cut her and her friends in half by the time the Judge here sucks their humanity out of them."

"Ooh, Angel is going to do the nasty Slayer what he did to me," Drusilla oozed out with a smile.

"Come on, Spike," Angel said with a huge grin, "it isn't like anyone can kill Judgy over there."

"Oh, Spike, let him, I want to see the Slayer's face," Drusilla said with large eyes of glee.

Spike shrugged, and said, "All right, Angelus, you go have fun with the Slayer protected by her super friends. You get dusted, and I'll have a happy day as well."

Angel glared at the smiling Spike, and said sarcastically, "Thanks, Spike, I won't forget this." Then Angel turned and walked away to find the sewer entrance he'd used.

-----

Buffy sighed, standing in front of Angel's apartment. It was late in the afternoon; it had taken her hours to calm down her mother, shower, and get a change of clothing. She took another deep breath to muster her courage, and entered. "Angel? Are you here?" Buffy called, looking around the room, and then to the bedroom. She walked toward it.

Behind her, in the living room section emerged Angel, his upper body naked, and he said casually, "Hey, Buffy."

Buffy whirled around, and said, "Uh, Angel, hi, I . . . uh . . . we need to talk."

Angel took his watch from the dresser and put it on, while saying, "Oh, no, no talking needed. I don't do the talking well, I don't like to talk."

"Oh," Buffy said, frowning, but inside in trepidation how to break his heart.

Angel got a black blouse and went to put it on, saying, "Listen, I gotta run, do some stuff, see the world and all that."

Buffy's eyes widened, rising up with the relief her heart that flooded her heart. "Oh, yeah? Well, yeah, I suppose it was me," Buffy said, thinking she was stupid a 240-year-old guy would notice she was faking it, and was highly uncomfortable.

"Oh, no, you got a lot to learn about men, kiddo," Angelus spoke with a gleeful grin, anticipating the destruction. "You were good, hell, you were a pro, your pimp Xander taught you well."

-WHAT?- was Buffy's thought, shock running through her body. Did he really just? And here she was thinking about how to let him down easy. Rage suddenly suffused her being, and she said, "Oh, yeah, I faked it like a pro alright."

Angel's easy evil smile faltered, shock blasting on his face, and he said, "WHAT? No-no, you didn't fake anything! No woman needs to fake it when I'm on the steering wheel!"

"Oh, I'm sorry, Angel," Buffy said sarcastically, still very pissed, "but while I was grunting and moaning, all I was thinking was, 'Eew, he's _/really/_ a corpse, all cold and clammy, and I'm damn certain the difference between limp and erect was _/much/_ bigger with Xander, must be that missing heart beat I'm not sensing - anywhere. Oh, my god, somebody get this icky thing off me so I can go to Xander's home and get the finishing touch from a _/real/_ man.'"

By now, Angelus was practically ready to explode. His face was contorted with rage, and he said, "You filthy fucking slut! I'll show you real man!" He lunged forward, and Buffy easily grabbed the punch and twisted him aside, crashing him against the wall with his arm twisted behind him.

"Oh, I get it. This whole sweetheart act was still there the second time around, huh?" Buffy told him pissed off, while Angel growled with rage on his face. "I get it now, I was stupid to think the guy who would let me die before admitting he didn't know CPR actually gave a damn about me. I applaud you, you had me going magnificently. Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me. So because of that, I'll let you go. When we're done with the Judge, leave Sunnydale, and I'll call you when we need a sacrifice in a ritual to stop the next big bad." Buffy then tossed Angel across the room. She took the claddagh ring from her finger and tossed it over in front of him. "You can keep that," she said, and stalked out of the apartment.

From his position on the floor Angelus stared with mounting rage at the front door. "THAT BITCH!" he suddenly raged out, vamping out. "NOW THIS IS SERIOUS!"

Buffy was long out of earshot. The moment she knew Angel couldn't see her anymore, her cool had broken and she had run with everything she had. After a minute she slowed down, and broke down. Sobs burst forth from her, as new tears flowed down her cheeks. She grabbed her stomach and sank into a squat. "Oh, god, oh, god," Buffy told herself, squinting her eyes closed. "I'm sorry, Xander. I can't believe I fell for it." In her mind's eye she tried to picture how Xander felt being forced to share her with that bastard, with what he knew was a bastard; a bastard demon-animated corpse. Xander's momentary look, when she pulled away from his female form filtered in her many. Pain and guilt coursed through her as she cried, unable to comprehend how royally she screwed up. She could kiss a cold corpse, while she couldn't even momentarily handle Lexa. So she wasn't gay, or bi, but she could still have just broken the kiss gently, and get some warm water. She couldn't believe just how badly she screwed this up.

-----

"Can't be killed, took an army, can't be killed took an army . . . AARGH!" Lotion exclaimed with frustration. "I vote we just go down there, and start kicking ass."

"That would not be a prudent action at this point, Lotion," Giles said with a measured voice, reading in a book as he came down a set of stairs. "Even if we'd get close enough to hit the Judge, with or without a weapon, the hit would allow it to burn the humanity in you. Most likely though, he'll have burned you before you're even halfway to him."

"Well, this officially sucks," Cordelia commented angrily. "Great, just staring to become good enough I don't have to run and scream like a girl, and I'm demon chow anyway."

"I think that's taking things a little too pessimistic," Giles said carefully. Cordelia looked at him with narrowed eyes. Giles quickly looked down, not willing to take the chance Cordelia would manage to make him fess up what he really thought.

"We're gonna kick its ass, that's for sure," Xander said flipping a page. "Trust me, we're not going to die now."

They all looked up at him, but he continued reading, and flipped the next page.

-----

I didn't even realize I said that. Before I would have tossed off a lame joke, and although there are times for lame jokes, and I love to make them, there are times when a joke, lame or not, is just... lame. I suppose I got you and your father to thank for that. You must have noticed I wasn't exactly Mr. Confident before I met you guys...

-----

Then...

The Chinese grass plain stretched out before Xander as huffed and puffed to continue onward. In front of him were Genma and Ranma Saotome. Genma was in a brownish gi barefoot, while Ranma was in green pants, a red shirt, and traditional kung fu fighting slippers. Ranma's, a black-haired boy, had a characteristic pigtail that started at the back of his head, where his neck started, and lead down a short distance, to just below the shoulders. Xander in contrast was in the clothes that the Jusenkyo guide had managed to scrounge up: in short far too big dark brown pants and shirt. The slave outfit he had worn when he arrived her he had tossed in aside in disgust quite a bit ago. "I can't go on!" Xander finally complained, and bent over, leaning on his knees.

Genma and Ranma turned around, and casually running in place they looked at Xander. "Ha! You stand! You run!" Genma exclaimed in broken, accented English, although he was getting better.

"Yeah, come on, Xan, no give up now!" Ranma added with a grin. "You got much more give, come on."

"I'm tired," Xander complained.

"Xan, trust me, I was there," Genma took over from his sun with a proud smile. "I proud you go this far, but you go many farther. Have strength, have faith, trust me."

Xander looked at them, almost disbelieving. Nobody had ever told him he could be good at anything, nobody ever told him he had much more to give. Okay, maybe his mother had when he was little and she was still relatively sober, but that was a long, long time ago and she sure didn't do so now. Then he straightened up, looking more determined, and started running again. Ranma and Genma started running along with him again, a little slower than before so they wouldn't outrun Xander again; so the American had two people to drag himself along with.

An hour later they reached camp, and Xander dropped to the ground, sucking in deep breaths, and coughing, spitting out slime his mouth had produced. "See, boy," Genma said with a huge grin. Xander looked weakly up at the man, and the approving smile. "Now you no onward."

-----

Xander blocked Ranma's punch, and had his legs swiped from under him at about the same time, followed by a roundhouse kick to his face. He was flung through the air a meter before landing painfully on the soil. A little further on was a tent, and a man sat at a fire. "Argh, I can't do this," Xander muttered.

"Kami, Xan, not this, not that," Ranma exclaimed with some annoyance and amusement. He offered his hand and Xander took it. As he pulled Xander up, he said, "You stop that. You good, really good."

"What are you talking about? You guys keep kicking my ass," Xander said in annoyance feeling his aching behind.

"Years and years of training," Ranma said with a huge grin. "You much better average after this much training."

Xander looked at Ranma with disbelief. "No lie, you good," Ranma said with a smirk. "Natural, almost natural as me; might be challenge one day."

There was a grunt and a grumble and Xander and Ranma looked to Xander's right. A big panda nodded and had a sign in the air, saying, 'Ranma right. Xander good.' He put the sign in his fur coat and pulled out another one, 'Proud. I have two sons now.' The panda made some acknowledging grunts as it nodded, while Xander couldn't believe it. His own father sold him to the Chinese mob, and here was a man thinking of him as a son, and apparently loving him, and thinking highly of him, believing he was good at something. The same went for his surrogate brother. Nobody had every thought highly of him, even his friends who loved him and didn't consider him a screw up had ever considered him _/really/_ good at something. The panda put the sign away, and pulled out a new one, 'Sons get food, I'm just panda.'

"Pops!" Ranma yelled and then ran forward. The panda's eyes grew wide as Ranma came in with a flying kick, doubling the panda over as it flew back with the impact. Ranma walked over to the fire where the guide had almost finished boiling a kettle of water. Ranma grabbed it and tossed the kettle away. The kettle and its contents splashed on the panda.

Instead of the panda, there instantly was a man screaming, "YAAAAAHHH!"

"Go get your own food, you lazy bastard," Ranma told him, as the man jumped up and down in the hope he wasn't too burned. Xander laughed out loud at the spectacle, while the guide went over to retrieve the kettle with a sigh.

-----

Left block, right block. "Oof!" Xander exclaimed as a solid kick slammed into his stomach and he was launched backward, to land painfully on his ass. He flipped up back to his feet, and grinned at Genma, who grinned right back. "Yah!" Xander yelled as he charged forward, and attacked with everything he has. Genma blocked a few hits, and then to his surprise got a solid punch across his left cheek. With a quick move he made use of Xander's over extension and swiped his legs out from under him.

"Ah, overextend," Genma spoked down at Xander. Then grabbed him and pulled him up in a bear hug, before locking his head underneath his shoulder. "Ranma! You see this amazing guy? He at your level soon!"

Ranma who was leisurely sitting on a tree branch grinned, and said, "Only because chi of possession, and Hellmouth!"

"Whoa!" Genma exclaimed as he was lifted up, and then dropped down as Xander let himself fell backward. "Oof!" the both of them said, but Xander had the least.

He got up and said with a grin, "American wrestling."

-----

Anyway, where were we? Oh, yeah, Buffy had just told off Angelus, and we were still stuck on the unkillable one. Suffice it to say, Angelus was not a happy camper, no sir, not at all.

-----

"I need a break; for one thing, I need to pee," Xander muttered, bleary eyed from reading through books for too long.

"Me too, actually," Willow muttered, and Lotion looked up at the two for a moment, but then continued with her book. The two old friends got up from their respective positions at the table, and walked out of the library.

Willow watched as Xander craned his neck, and his bones audible snapped into place. "Ah, I spent way too much time looking down," Xander muttered in annoyance.

"Yeah, me too," Willow said, rubbing her neck. "Xan, you really think we can beat this thing?"

"It's just another demon, Will," Xander said as they walked slowly toward the bathrooms. The lights were mostly out, and since the sun had just gone down it was dark.

"Yeah, but this one can't be killed by any weapon made by man, and it took a whole army to take him down last time, most of them didn't survive," Willow muttered a little fearfully. "The army of our time would send us to the loony bin before they're going to fight a blue demon."

Xander frowned, as something tried to filter into his consciousness, but then a voice interrupted. "Willow, Xander." The two teen looked up and saw a silhouette standing there.

"Angel?" Willow asked a little surprised.

Xander frowned as Angel stepped a bit more into the light of an outside lantern filtering through the door's windows. "Yeah, I found a way to kill the Judge, but I need everyone's help. Xander you go find the others, while Willow you come over here for a bit, I need to talk to you?"

"Me?" Willow asked, taking a step forward.

Angelus nodded saying, "You and Jenny are going to be the key; we're going to need magic."

Willow smiled taking another step when Xander's hand was in front of her chest stopping her. "Don't/back," Xander/Jenny said. Willow turned and frowned, seeing Jenny emerge behind them. Xander gave a quick look back.

Xander took a step forward in front of Willow, and said, "So, that soul-having thing, didn't work out for you, huh, Angel?" Jenny looked surprised.

Angelus' face fully entered the light and just as Willow was about to question Xander she heard the vampire snicker evilly. "So, you know, huh?"

Xander gave him a smile, and said, "Before there was something . . . human, something soully about you. Now you're just ink black."

In a side corridor was Buffy, having arrived back at the school herself. She listened with large eyes at the conversation. Back at the apartment! She wasn't fooled after all. Angel somehow lost his soul.

"Well, that's rather annoying," Angelus said, and turned around to leave.

"You think I'm just going to let you walk out of here?" Xander asked with a grin, taking another few steps forward. Finally he got to legitimately do what he'd wanted to do for a long time. There was no way Buffy could fault him for dusting a soulless demon.

Angelus turned back, he shrugged, and with an evil grin he said, "Well, I don't know; you let Buffy get away after you taught her being a slut is good. I know you _/really/_ taught her well, damn she's good in the sack."

Xander snarled and started to burst forward. Buffy quickly jumped from her side corridor and stopped Xander. "Don't," Buffy pleaded, while Xander looked with an enraged face at the snickering Angelus, "he wants you to attack angrily, so you'll make mistakes."

"I don't think, Buffy, he's got the strength, skill, or speed to capitalize on any mistakes I might make," Xander growled.

"Take a step back, Xander," Willow pleaded from behind him. "Do it level headed." Xander cooled down a bit.

Angelus laughed, and looked directly at Xander. "You think so?" Angelus grinned evilly, and grabbed a fire extinguisher. With a vicious slash he ripped open the pointy end. White gass burst forth from the hole and then he tossed the thing at them, while turning around and running away.

"DUCK!" Buffy yelled, even as Xander grabbed her, and dragged her into a classroom to their left. Willow and Jenny ducked to the floor. A moment later the extinguisher slammed into the ground and exploded mightily, sending shards of the metal case flying everywhere and half covering the corridor.

Buffy and Xander came back out, and took in the devastation. Then they ran back, yelling, "Willow!"

"I'm fine," a coughing voice sounded, and the found her lying on the floor.

"Jenny?" Xander called after making sure Willow was safe and in the hands of Buffy. He quickly found Jenny as the others filtered into the corridor from the library.

"What the bloody hell?" Giles asked and then ran over to Jenny.

"I'm fine," Jenny said, reassuring Giles with a pat on his arm.

"What happened?" Cordelia asked looking around the corridor.

"A vampire paid us a visit," Xander muttered sarcastically, turning around toward the toilets and then walking off, saying, "Let's put it to you this way. Bye, bye, Angel, hello homicidal maniac Angelus."

"Good lord," Giles said as Cordelia turned to look accusatorial at Buffy, who looked away pained.

"Huh, wonder how that happened," Oz remarked casually.

"I gotta pee," Willow complained and sped off to the girls' room.

-----

A short while later everyone was in the library. "This . . ." Giles started, trying to find the right words. "This isn't good."

"Duh," Cordelia said sarcastically, "could you be any more obvious, Giles?"

"Well," Giles said in answer, resetting his glasses with apprehension, "of all the things I could have thought could go wrong, Angel switching teams wasn't one of them; it unbalances things."

"And they weren't unbalanced before?" Willow asked, making everyone look at her. "With the whole unkillable thing," she clarified.

"How did you know it wasn't, Angel, Xander?" Giles asked intrigued.

"Sixth sense thing," Xander said, sat down more comfortable and explained, "some time after I started training with chi, I've found I could sense it a bit. I've gotten better at it over time. I can sense the difference between the chi of a demon and that of a person. Angelus had nothing left of the person."

Buffy frowned and turned to Jenny. "How did you know?"

Jenny looked at her, surprised, and then thought of a lie. She could probably pull of the same reason Xander had given with her magic and magic sense, or . . . she could tell the truth. She rubbed her hands, and then looked up at the groups expecting gazes, and settled on Willow, her new apprentice. The girl that had come to surprise her, and had come to care for so much. She had beaten Deo's messing with her, and hadn't let the magical power consume her. She couldn't lie anymore, she just couldn't. She looked down again and with trembling lip said, "My name is Jana Calderash, of the Calderash clan, the gypsy clan that cursed Angel."

Slowly she looked up, and looked at the faces of the people she'd started considering as friends, and one lover. They looked surprised, and then on several of them grew betrayal. "You knew!" Buffy accused. "You knew! How did he . . .?" Buffy trailed of when she saw Jenny looking at her. It couldn't be; it couldn't be.

"I didn't know," Jenny muttered miserable. "You have to believe me, I was sent here to keep an eye on Angel, to make sure he didn't lose his soul. My uncle arrived yesterday, and I was only then told why. The curse had a way out; happiness. True happiness, even for only a moment, and the soul is taken from him." She looked at Buffy guiltily and said, "When you didn't return, I started suspecting."

"You bi-" Buffy started with a growl, readying to get up.

"Wait, wait, wait, wait!" Xander suddenly called out pissed off and confused. "Exactly what happened last night that didn't happen the months before that could have- . . ." Xander suddenly stopped and remembered what Angel said. He shot a look at Buffy, and Buffy looked at him, guilt filtering her gaze and she kept it trained at hi. Her heart broke, when she saw momentary revolt on his face, and he whispered, "He didn't lie, did he?" Buffy looked down, and Willow sitting next to her slung an arm around her shoulder. "Fuck," Xander said, and then gripped the arm rests of his chair. Giles pulled the glasses from his nose and started furiously cleaning them.

"Huh? What? What's going on?" Lotion said uncomprehending.

Cordelia looked from one to the other, and suddenly comprehension entered her being. "Eew, you did it with a corpse? Ew, ugh, that's just . . ."

"You . . ." That's how far Lotion came, the usually chatty Amazon just looked with disgust at Buffy.

Buffy was suddenly fed up with it. "I _/know/_! Alright?" Buffy exclaimed both angry and pained. "I **-know-**! You think _/you're/_ disgusted? Try being me; I actually did it. It was disgusting, it was eeeewww!" Buffy sat there shuddering as the memory returned again. "I was stupid; I know already! I didn't take the corpse thing as a biggy, 'cause walking, and I should have. I should have! It was cold and clammy, and there was no blood pumping, and ugh." Buffy squinted her eyes at her disgust. "So will you all please quit with the berating of me, I'm doing enough of it myself, let's just figure out how to destroy the Judge and worry about the rest later."

"Ah, yes, yes," Giles said, putting his shiny clean glasses back on his nose. "I believe that would be a good order of things . . ."

Buffy's anger had taken a dip with her guilt and disgust, but it quickly flared back into rage. "Except first, out!" Buffy looked at Jenny and pointed at the door.

Jenny looked around the room, and saw Willow look down. Xander just stared ahead with a tight face. Lotion glared at her. Cordelia was never the strongest with the friendly feelings, and Oz obviously stuck with his girlfriend. Jenny finally settled on Giles, and the man turned away, obviously pained. Jenny's heart broke, and she slowly got up. Halfway to the library exit she turned around, and muttered, "I'm sorry, I really am. I didn't know, and I was just sent here."

Jenny turned back and continued onward. "WAIT!" Buffy called out suddenly, and Jenny turned back. "You said your uncle was here? Can he recurse Angel?"

Jenny shook her head, "The magics were lost a long time ago."

"The vampire doesn't know that," Lotion observed coolly. Everyone turned to her, and then they bounced to their feet.

-----

The door opened and the gypsy turned around. "How did you get in here?" he asked, backing up.

Angelus grinned, and said, "Funny thing that, hired motel rooms don't work. The owner has to invite me in only once." Then he vamped out.

-----

The extended Scooby Gang looked around the room. Entrails and blood were everywhere. Two words were written in blood on the wall, 'Too late.'

"Uncle," Jenny whispered painfully.

Buffy swallowed. She didn't like the guy who hadn't told Jenny, her, and everyone else months in advance about the curse, in fact she kinda hated him, but he didn't deserve death - and she was for a good part responsible for it.

Willow turned away, and said softly, "L-let's just go."

-----

"FUCK! GOD DAMN IT! THAT BITCH!" Angel raved, kicking an empty box, then kicking a pipe as he entered the factory. "'Faked it like a pro.' RRAARGH!"

Spike came rolling into view from a side way, while further on was the main hall, and snickered. "My, what do my ears hear now," Spike spoke with a huge grin. "The great Angelus can't make the bint that's in love with him come. What's the matter, _/Angel/_? Not big enough for her?"

"Fuck you, Spike!" Angelus hissed out in anger. "She doesn't like a cold, clammy corpse, you wouldn't have gotten anywhere with her either. Besides, it was Soul Boy that couldn't perform, not me."

"Oh, doesn't matter," Spike spoke with a huge grin, "I would have succeeded." Then he laughed out loud, and let the last one die slowly. With his head in his neck, Spike said, "Oh, this has got to be one of the best days of my unlife. Soul Boy is gone. The great Angelus turns out to be a pussy in bed. And tomorrow an unkillable demon is going to burn the thorns in my side to ashes. If it weren't for this wheelchair . . ."

Angelus was fed up and was in Spike's face instantly, with a warning finger, he snarled, "Watch it, Roller Boy! You're carefully close to making me do something drastic."

Spike's grin only deepened, and he called, "Yo, Judge!"

The big blue demon got up from his sitting position in the main hall, and faced Spike and Angelus. "Yes?" he said.

"I know you can't burn this wanker down, but can you still beat him up the old fashioned way and put a stake through his unbeating heart?" Spike asked with a huge grin.

"Of course," the Judge answered him.

Spike looked back at Angelus still in close. The brunette vampire's face twitched once, and then straightened up and stalked off grumbling. Spike turned his wheel chair and snickered watching Angelus walk off.

Drusilla appeared behind Spike, and said, "You weren't very nice to daddy, Spike."

Spike angled his head back, looking up at Drusilla, and asked gently, "Did you want me to be, pet?"

Drusilla gave him a naughty smile, and said, "No." Then she bent down and kissed Spike deeply. After that she wheeled Spike toward the main hall.

-----

So there we were. Outnumbered and outgunned, a new day in school where I didn't get any schoolwork done, thinking about how to solve this problem. I used a fertilizer built explosive to kill a demon not to long before (Halloween possession, don't ask, different story) but there was no way to get close enough without being zapped. The rest of us were either moping, or disgusted, or pissed off, in short we didn't get much done. To top it off, I was distracted, very distracted...

-----

"Can't be killed, took an army," Cordelia muttered as the Scooby Gang slowly walked through the busy highschool hallway. They were in two rows of three. Up front Cordelia, Oz, and Willow, and in the second, Buffy, Lotion, and Xander. "We're doomed, people. I think it's official."

With his hands in his pockets, Xander asked, "Is anyone else distracted by the whole; he didn't get a true happy till he exploded his dead seed in a delectable, teenage vagina?"

The whole group turned to him. Lotion spoke, "No, I'm just distracted by a corpse having . . . eew."

"I get it, didn't I say that?" Buffy said with annoyance.

"No," Xander answered Lotion. "Think about it. Mister Dead Man has a hot blonde telling him she loves him despite him being a corpse, and even kisses him. I know I get true happy moments kissing Buffy, and even when kissing you other three, and not offense, but I think you know Buffy's on top and you're a step below." Xander finished his little speech while the others looked at him. What he just said filtered through his brain, and he quickly added, "Kissing Cordelia is in the past of course, Oz, am not messing with your girlfriend."

Oz coolly nodded, answered, "Got that."

"Well, I don't know, he did have to get past the big I-was-an-evil-torturing-killing-machine guilt," Willow pointed out, feeling the need to protect Buffy a bit, trying to make her choice not seem even worse.

Xander pondered it for only a moment, and said softly, "Wouldn't that make a simple "I love you" or kiss even _/more/_ of a happy? I know if I was a murdering bastard for over a century and got my soul; the thought of sex with anyone let alone a young girl wouldn't even filter in my mind. A simple loving despite the monster or a kiss would already be the pinnacle of perfection and amazement to me; hell someone trusting me and considering me a friend might even do it. But Angel had to have sex first."

Oz gave a nod, and Willow looked back to glare at Xander, and then looking sympathetically at Buffy. "Yeah, I screwed up," Buffy spoke up a little annoyed, pained at her decision. "I got dazzled by the looks, by the gifts, and by the idea of a strong, vampire, star-crossed forbidden lovers romance, and all that. It's not going to help us stop the Judge." They reached the Library and turned to enter it. Buffy turned to look at Xander after the doors closed behind them, and she asked, "Say, those explosives aren't forged now are they?"

"Except we can't get close enough without getting burned," Xander replied to her. Giles, who was behind the counter attempting to read a book, looked up and pinched the bridge of his nose in attempt to stay awake. Xander continued, "And none of us can carry enough for an army to make sure we're going to take him along with- . . ." Xander trailed off, eyes a little wider.

They all looked at him, and Willow tried, "Xander?"

"Sh!" Xander bit her off, and then said, "I'm having a moment, no an idea, wait . . . I have a plan!" A big feral grin crossed his face, and he said, "Oh, yeah, the Judge is going down, boy is he _/ever/_."

"Really?" Giles asked him.

"I'm gonna need some help though," Xander said taking in the four girls and guy, "first some wheels with loading capacity."

"Van," Oz commented with a small point to himself.

"Great," Xander said with a grin, and then he looked at the other girls. Cordelia was Oz's girlfriend, Buffy was most certainly not feeling sexy, and neither was Willow who seemed to be feeling with Buffy. "Lotion, you're the second part of the plan. I'm gonna need you to wear something very . . . slutty."

"Slutty?" Lotion asked both surprised and a little darkly as she looked down at her curve-hugging Chinese top that reached to just her ass, and the tight knee-length pants underneath.

"Ah, Cordelia, could you dress our tasty worm on the hook for worm duty," Xander asked with a grin at the brunette, taking her in. She was dressed in skintight pants, and a very low-cut blouse. "Kinds like what your wearing, only just a bit sluttier."

"Hey!" Cordelia said only half-angry as she folded her arms across her chest.

"I feel the need to chivalrously, and perhaps chauvinistically protect my girlfriend's honor, except I can't find the words," Oz said and so he settled on glaring at Xander, which lasted all of half a second before his neutral face returned.

"Tough to argue with the truth," Buffy added in with a smirk.

"This coming from the necrophiliac," Cordelia returned hatefully.

"Oh," Willow said and quickly hugged Buffy comfortingly.

"Exactly what is your plan, Xander?" Giles asked a little confused.

Xander grinned at Giles, and said, "I'll dazzle you with my brilliance later. Oz, you and the girls gotta pick me up at seven, no sooner, and no later."

-----

Xander looked outside his apartment, and saw the rain splash down. "Damn," he muttered, and then shrugged. "Actually, I can work with his." He went over to the sink and splashed water on his face. Lexa smoothly stretch back, pushing out her chest in the process. She grinned down and said, "This is actually going to be better."

She went into the bedroom, and took off Xander's clothes, putting them in the laundry bin. She opened the closet and took out a pair of g-string lacy panties and matching bra. She quickly put the panties on, pulling them up snugly and then put on the bra. Next was a white blouse, which buttoned closed only to the start of her breasts. It was low cut that way, straining over her ample chest, and low enough to just show off a small part of the lacy cups of the bra. A tight thigh-length green skirt followed, and Lexa tucked the blouse it, making it hug her form a bit more. She zipped it up, and got out a few medium heels and put them on. Finished with the dressing, she went over to the mirror. She got out a pink lipstick and applied it to her lips. After pressing her lips to a paper handkerchief she took in her dark eyes. She then pulled her hair back, and put it in a pony tail, tying it off with an elastic. She winked at herself, and gave a kiss. She went back to her closet. She quickly got the military cap she had worn on Halloween and put it on, pulling her tail through the opening in the back. The finishing touch was her leather jacket which she left open half-way so her cleavage stayed on display. She looked in the mirror again, cupping her breasts for a moment, and winking at herself. "Oh, any guard that I come across won't know what hit him," she told herself and gave herself a kiss in the air.

There was the sound of a horn, and Lexa went out the bedroom again. She snatched her keys from the kitchen counter and checked the time. "Nicely on time, Oz," Lexa said and sped to her front door and exited.

A bit later she reached the building's entrance, and went out, running as fast as she could through the rain to Oz's van who was waiting on the street. The side door slid open, revealing lotion and Lexa quickly jumped in. Lotion slid the door shut and as Oz and Cordelia looked back, Lexa took in the amazon. Lotion was wearing a tiny pink top that pushed up her breasts, and the sleeves went all the way to the wrists. It left her belly button bare, and beneath that was a short loose skirt that draped smoothly along her legs, and barely covered her ass. A pare of leather fuck-me boots completed the ensemble. A brown jacket protected the Amazon and her outfit from the elements, and it, just like Lexa's, was only partly closed.

Lexa smile and turned around to look at Cordelia. "Nice, Cor, really nice," Lexa said with a grin.

Cordelia rolled her eyes, and said, "Did you expect anything less?"

"I feel like I'm on display," Lotion half-complained.

Lexa turned back to Lotion and smiling disarmingly she said, "That's the point, and it's a nice feeling huh?" Lotion raised her eyebrows. Lexa turned back to the front, and asked, "Oz, do you know the local army base or do I have to give you directions?"

Oz raised his eyebrows, and said, "No, the Dingoes once had a gig there." He turned the wheel and pressed the accelerator. The van slowly started to move. Oz looked back for a moment, and the corners of his mouth quirked just a bit at Lexa. "It's fascinating that a guy can turn so completely into a girl, and I don't mean the body."

Lexa winked at him as she said, "Well, I _/am/_ one hundred percent girl."

"Stop flirting with my boyfriend," Cordelia shot Lexa a glare. "And you too, mister, no flirting."

"Yes, ma'am," Oz said and his eyes twinkled as he looked at Cordelia. The cheerleader folded her arms across her chest and sank herself further down in the chair.

-----

The van slowed down at the back end of the military base, which was surrounded by a chicken wire fence. "Okay, here's the plan," Lexa said with a smile. "Lotion, you follow my lead, and act clingy. As in, you want me."

"I can do that," Lotion said with a grin.

"Good, then you two wait here," Lexa added to Oz and Cordelia.

"Wait here?" Cordelia asked dryly.

Lexa shrugged and slid open the door, then helped out Lotion. They were wet with the rain quickly and maneuvered through a hole in the fence.

"So," Oz started, looking from the window to Cordelia, "you guys often steal weapons from the army?"

Cordelia grinned at him and said, "Well, there are only so many reruns of The A-Team you can watch before you have to try it yourself."

Oz smiled a bit. Cordelia looked around and said, "Kinda romantic isn't it? All alone, lovely rain sound, big military base?" Oz grabbed her chin and pulled her head to her left, to face him. A moment later his lips touched hers and their tongues met.

After bit they broke apart and Cordelia looked with large eyes at him. He said, "You're amazing, and you have so much depth. Don't be afraid to keep it hidden." Cordelia swallowed heavily.

Outside Lexa muttered to Lotion, "Security is horrible. I should write a letter." The two slowly proceeded alongside a rather big shack. On the other side of the little clear path, lay all kinds of things stacked up. Lexa went closer to the shack and peered through the window. She grinned when she found they had the right one right away. Steadily they reached toward a door.

"Halt!" a voice called and a soldier in rain uniform appeared. "Who are you? What are you doing here?" He aimed the machine gun in his hands at the girls.

Lexa smirked and took two seductive steps forward. "I'm Petra Verdun, I'm with the 33rd."

"The 33rd are on maneuvers upstate," the guard said with suspicion, moving his gun so he held it with his right, the calf pressing into his upper arm and the gun pointing up.

"I know," Lexa said with twinkling eyes. The rain made the material of Lexa's blouse clingy and almost see-through; causing the guard's eyes to be drawn to her breasts shown off in a magnificent outline. "I'm on leave," Lexa said. "Listen, could you cut me some slack?" She walked up to the guard and pushed her body against his conspiratorially, and incidentally very erotically. "I just caught me this hot chick, and come on . . ." Lexa nudged him, smiling sexily and knowingly, "a stud like you should know how they get turned on by the big guns. I just took her here for a little R&R, if you know what I mean. No harm, no foul?"

"I-I don't know; being gay- . . ." the guard said, his resolve weakening as Lexa rubbed her breasts up and down his chest.

"Oh, I'm not gay; I just like to experience a woman's body now and then as well. I'm sure you can relate," Lexa purred with a grin. "She's a bit skittish. Breaking in is stressful for her. But I'm sure after a while I'll have her loosened up enough for a . . ." Lexa pushed herself more against the guard, and whispered seductively in his ear, ". . . threesome." Lexa pulled back a bit, and putting a finger on her lips she added, "Ssh." She made a gently gesture with her head toward Lotion, while she let her right arm drag down, and made a 'come' gesture to Lotion with it.

Lotion came over, swaying her lips and her cleavage, and said softly, "Petra? Are we in trouble? You said you wouldn't get us into trouble?" Lotion was right behind 'Petra' now, putting her hand on the soldier girl's body to gain strength and comfort. Her eyelids blinked at the guard.

The guard swallowed as she looked from one to the other. Both girls were amazingly hot, one with heavy make-up the other with a light touch. The military pony tail in the cap, contrasting with the amazing feminine get up, along with those amazingly kissable lips turned him on to no end. Then the second, just as amazing breasts and cleavage, drenched in rain, and a short skirt that threatened to reveal the girl's ass with just a bit of a flick. Lexa put her lips along his face and to his ear again, whispering softly so Lotion couldn't hear, "Possible threesome, or I can throw on report for dereliction of duty, you should have been here - and a stud like you really shouldn't hold his gun like a wimp, breaks the image."

The guard coughed, taking a step back. He put the gun in a more manly position, and said softly, "Sorry, for the misunderstanding, carry on, ma'ams."

Lexa backed away, pulling Lotion along, and threw the guard a kiss before he turned and walked off. The two women than returned to the door. "Ooh, that was fun," Lexa said with a smirk at Lotion.

Lotion shook her head, saying, "Too easy."

Lexa smiled at her and pulled two metal things from her jacket, and started working on the lock with them. "Do you really think girls get turn on seeing big guns?" Lotion asked watching Lexa work.

"How do you feel seeing a big, beautiful sword?" Lexa asked her as the door clicked open.

"Hmm," Lotion said with a grin as they walked inside, placing her arm around Lexa's waist.

"There you have your answer," Lexa said softly, smiling as she walked onward to find what he was looking for, Lotion kept her arm around her waist as she continued onward. Lexa looked down, and asked, "You don't have a problem with me being a girl?"

"Why would I? I see future husband shining through girl easily, and I'm an Amazon. I was raised to be comfortable among girls," Lotion answered Lexa lightly confused.

-----

The door jingled and slid open. Cordelia and Oz hastily broke apart, and looked as Lexa and Lotion placed several cases inside. "Got everything you needed?" Oz asked smoothly.

Lexa smiled at him, with knowing eyes and said, "Sure, and a few little extras that might come in handy one day; how was the kissing?"

As Lexa and Lotion joined the crates into van, Cordelia complained, "I'm so glad we broke up, or I'd be the girlfriend of a juvenile delinquent."

"As opposed to being friends with two, a girlfriend of one, being one, and friends with several accomplices?" Lexa returned the remark to Cordelia smoothly.

Cordelia made a frustrated sound, and said, "Oz, just get us out of here."

-----

In the weapons cage of the library Lexa, Giles, Buffy and Willow stood. Buffy looked with curiosity at the military issue green crate in front of her. "Okay, so show the plan already," Buffy said eagerly.

Lexa unlocked the crate and opened it, showing a rocket launcher. "Ooh," Buffy said, with large shiny eyes.

"Whoa," Willow said in surprise.

"My Lord, Xander, how did you get that?" Giles asked shocked, then looked at Lexa with an admiring face.

Lexa grinned, and told him, "I don't think you want to know." Giles nodded and went to clean his glasses.

"Okay," Buffy said with a huge grin. "Show me how to work it."

"Why?" Lexa asked the Slayer.

Buffy whirled to face her best male friend, and said, "What do you mean 'why'? How else am I going to blow up the Judge."

Lexa grinned ferally at Buffy, and said, "_/You/_ are not going to blow up the Judge."

"Huh?" Buffy asked dumbfounded.

"What?" Lexa told her with twinkles in her eyes, supporting her breasts with her arms wrapped under them. "You think I came up with this plan, did all the work getting the rocket launcher, and then let _/you/_ have all the fun? Hell no, _/I'm/_ blowing up the Judge."

"But . . . I'm the Slayer!" Buffy protested with large eyes of a child screaming 'unfair'. "It's my job, my _/destiny/_ to blow up demons with rocket launchers."

Lexa grinned down at the smaller girl, and said, "I don't care."

Buffy whirled to face Giles, and said, "Giles, tell him. Tell him, I get to blow up the judge with the shiny new weapon."

"Ah, well, I don't think that'll help much. Plus he has a point, he did go through all the trouble," Giles said diplomatically.

"Uh," Buffy said, with sad puppy-dog eyes, making Giles turn away with guilt. Buffy turned onward to Willow, and said, "Willow, bestest friend, please tell Xander to teach me how to blow up the Judge."

"Lexa, you should teach Buffy how to blow up the Judge," Willow said, and Buffy happily turned around with a smug look at Lexa. Willow continued, "in case you get hurt, someone else needs to fire that thing."

Buffy's happy smug look faltered. "You have a point, Will," Lexa said with a grin.

"This is _/sooo/_ unfair," Buffy complained, and gave a deep sigh, "I get all the burdens of being chosen, and the one, the _/one/ _time that being the Slayer means I get to do something fun, and I don't get to do it? Why me? Why can't I do the fun things of being chosen as well?"

"Ah, cheer up, Buffy," Lexa said with a smirk. "I promise the next demon that needs blowing up with a rocket launcher, I'll let you do it. Now pay attention." Buffy gave Lexa a dark look, before moodily paying attention.

-----

Wow. Me and girls, Ranma, like Superman and kryptonite. I would never have had the guts to do the above before, not to any girl, certainly not Buffy. Buffy was this grand dame and hero that I could never reach. Talking to them with cool was out of the question. No matter how often I might have tried to chase after one, I always turned into a blubbering idiot trying to get the words out okay, let alone sentences, unless I was making fun of myself and making myself look bad, for some reason those always came out okay. But that changed once I got me a female body, not to mention that last night in Hong Kong, remember?

-----

Lying in a bed in a two bit motel room in down town Hong Kong, Ranma looked over at his snoring father, then back up at the ceiling again. Xander lay in third bed, and Ranma suddenly said, "You know, Xan, tomorrow me and pops are going back to Japan. You're going home not long after. We should do something on this last night together."

"Like what?"

"I don't know . . . how about we check out a nightclub, go dancing, show me how to pick up some girls, never done that before, and I need to do something manly," Ranma said with a grin and then turned his head to Xander. Xander had just audibly gulped and looked like a deer caught in the headlights. "What?" Ranma asked.

"Uh, well, uh, I may have, uh . . . exaggerating the girls thing . . . uh, a bit," Xander sputtered out, and Ranma's eyes brows rose questioningly. "I've chased a lot . . . just never picked up one." Ranma laughed. "You're not mad at me?" Xander asked surprised.

"Why?" Ranma said with a grin and suddenly got up. "Then it's definitely time to go pick up a girl for each of us."

"Wha?" Xander managed sitting up.

"Yeah, let's go," Ranma said resolutely and walked to the exit door.

"We can't do that," Xander said frantically. "We've got nothing to wear. I just got these Chinese country clothes, and you your standard fighting getup. We'd be laughed at."

"We beat them up," Ranma shrugged with cool confidence.

"I mean the girls," Xander said with some annoyance.

Ranma made a throw away gesture, and asked, "So?" Xander looked shocked as Ranma's reaction. Being laughed at by girls was like, was like the end of the world. "It isn't end of the world, in fact no big deal," Ranma told him, opening the door, and Xander looked at him with wide disbelieving eyes. "We simply go to next one; we're good looking, well-trained guys with muscles where the average girl don't think muscles could be. Sooner or later one is going to recognize we're hot; and see past a bit of clothing." Xander looked with disbelief at Ranma; that's not the way one approached a girl . . . or is it? "Come on, Xan, you sit there moping all night, or we go have some fun?"

"Okay," Xander said, awkwardly coming to a stand and walking over to Ranma.

-----

"Are you certain about this?" Xander muttered as he and Ranma stood in front of a bar and dancing. They were only a two places away from the bouncer, and Xander was having second thoughts.

"It's just a bar, that may have some girls, remember?" Ranma whispered to his newfound friend with a confident smile. "They can't hurt you, they can't beat you, the men in there can't either unless you're so unlucky there's a super martial a- . . ."

Xander's hand was slammed over Ranma's mouth, and he said, "Don't say it. With my luck, you say it, there _/will/_ be someone like that inside and I _/will/_ piss him off somehow, he'll kick my butt."

The line moved forward, and now there was only one group between them and the bouncers. Ranma said, "You have to lighten up. We're not on your Hellmouth, you know."

"Just being certain," Xander said, and the line moved forward again.

The bouncer with arms the size of oak trees it seemed took the two of them in, took them in again, and then laughed out loud. "You guys can't be serious, you actually think you can get in here, looking like that?" the bouncer exclaimed. "Get out of here."

Ranma glared for a moment, then smirked, grabbed the guy by the side of his collar and casually lifted him off the floor with one hand. "I didn't quite hear you there," Ranma said with a smirk. "Could you repeat that?"

The bouncer looked down at his dangling feet, gulped, and said, "Go right on in, not a problem."

"Thank you," Xander said as Ranma put the man down, then entered the club. "I can't believe you did that," Xander hissed at Ranma as they entered the loud club, with a lot of flashy lights.

Ranma shrugged and said, "Hey, he was impolite, if he were polite I would have moved on."

"You Japanese guys are real sticklers for politeness, huh?" Xander asked the less tall guy.

Ranma shrugged. The first girls rejected them stone cold, and as Xander attempted to take it hard, Ranma just shrugged and pulled him a long. The next to girls was the same thing, and then another pair. The fact that Ranma didn't seem to care one little bit started to rub off on Xander. Then they came across two girls, who couldn't resist the intrigue and mystery of two hot guys, one American and the other Asian, seemingly Japanese, dressed like last century's news in a flashy club. The Hong Kong girls themselves were lookers, beautifully Asian, one wearing a lovely dress, the other a top and skirt. One was called Chun, and the other Jia.

After a little talking one of them finally couldn't resist anymore, and asked Xander and Ranma, "Okay, you got to tell us, why the hell are you two dressed like that."

Xander was ready to falter at the apparent new rejection, but Ranma said with a casual grin, "Oh, couple of friends we recently met bet us we couldn't get a few girls to spend the evening with dressed like this."

"Nice friends," Jia commented with a little sarcasm.

Chun then asked, "So how did you two get in here dressed like that?"

Ranma grinned and moved his right sleeve up. He flexed his muscles and said, "Lifted the impolite bouncer off floor with just this arm, he suddenly became very helpful." Jia smirked as she let her eyes linger on the sexy, muscular arm. Xander looked a little shocked as Ranma's casual indifference to what the girls might thing.

Chun always had liked tall white guys, loved the Hollywood movies, and so she smirked at Xander and asked, "You as muscular as him?"

Xander looked at her shocked for a moment. She was flirting with him, definitely flirting with _/him/_. SHE WAS FLIRTING WITH HIM! His brain kicked back in gear, and said, "Y-you tell me." Xander lifted his arm, and looked nervously at it and Ranma who had lowered his. Ranma grinned and Xander pulled the sleeve of the drab two-piece clothing back, and flexed his own arm. To his shock muscles visually flexed. He _/knew/_ he had grown muscles over the past few months of course, but it was still a shock to him showing it to a girl.

"Definitely," Chun almost purred, her eyes glued to the arm. Xander turned his head to look back at her, and couldn't believe a girl was ogling him like he so often ogled girls. There had to be something wrong here. Girls didn't ogle did they? Certainly not him if the remote possibility existed they did.

Suddenly Ranma whispered in Xander's ear as he was still pondering the mystery, "Lower arm, before she jumps you right here; unless you like that."

Blushing a little, Xander quickly lowered the arm and the sleeve. Chun looked disappointed a moment, and then the look in her eyes became more sensual when she noticed Xander's shy blush. All those muscles and sensitive too. "So, Xander, what does an American here, having a Japanese friend," Chun positively purred.

God damn! What to say now? There was no way they'd believe the truth. Xander flickered his gaze at Ranma who gave him a big old, daring smirk. Ranma really didn't care. Ranma was right, what if they _/didn't/_ believe him, who cares? A slight smile filtered across Xander's face, and he said, "My pop sold me to the Chinese mob as a sex slave, I escaped. I'm stuck here till my newly issued passport and bank cards arrive."

"Really?" Chun asked with a chuckle. Xander could see she didn't believe him, but apparently she didn't care all that much. Going with the story, she asked, "A sex slave, huh? I can see that, I wouldn't mind have you as one." Xander couldn't fight off the blush, making Chun laugh delectably.

"And what's your story, Ranma?" Jia asked the other martial arts master.

"My pop dragged me here for a training exhibition," Ranma said with a smile. "Came across him, fleeing from the mob, asking for help. Not that he's a wimp or anything; they outnumbered him twenty to one and had guns, he was entitled to need some help."

"A great knight, huh? You'd help me too?" Jia asked Ranma, and he smiled at her.

"Of course," he said as she came closer and then they kissed.

Xander was dumbfounded when he found himself in the same position, but quickly went with the flow.

Fifteen minutes later they were out in some alley, making out with the girls. Suddenly they were sprayed with something wet from above. The girls continued kissing for about two seconds. They stopped the kiss, but kept their lips pressed to the newly formed girls, and moved their hands up to the front. A moment later they cupped distinctive breasts where there was a manly chest before. Their eyes flew open, and they took in the brunette girl and the redhead. "AAAH!" they screamed, taking three steps back, and then promptly fainted.

"That went well," girl-Xander commented, and then looked over to the newly red-haired girl-Ranma. Ranma chuckled. "Seriously," girl-Xander said, "better than I thought possible. I actually just made out with a girl. Me! Alexander Lavelle Harris! And dressed like this."

"Yeah, face it, Xan," the high pitched voice of girl-Ranma sounded, as she stretched out. "Girl or guy, we're hot, we're studs."

"You're food," a sinister voice commented.

Xander and Ranma looked at the end of an alley were a whole pack of vamped out vampires stood, some ten in total. Ranma smirked, placed her right fist against her left open palm, and said, "Ah, and a good fight to finish the night." She turned to girl-Xander, and said, "Shall we?"

"You got it," girl-Xander answered and they charged the pack of vampires.

The vampire looked shocked at the two attacking girls, and more so when the first fists hit with such force to break jaws and sent some of the crumbling to the ground, and one even flying right at his comrades. "Slayers? Real?" one vamp said with fright.

"Wasn't there only one?" another vamp commented before getting pummeled by girl-Ranma.

The edges of waste bins were used as decapitation tools, and not long after the dirt in the alley had grown a little taller.

"We better get them home," girl-Xander said pointing at the unconscious girls.

-----

That was an amazing, eye-opening night, Ranma, but nothing like after you left. As a girl, I KNEW I was hot, smoking hot. I embraced that side as you know, and as a girl I could go out with complete and utter confidence. Guys turned their heads to check me out, guys patted my ass, guys pinched my ass - after which I broke the bones in said guys' fingers - and with the gay girls it was no different; although they were a little difficult to find in Hong Kong, is apparently a lot more a taboo in Asia than it already is in America. Seriously, you should embrace it too. But to make a long story short; the more comfortable I could be as a girl, the more confidence I gained. And as girls and guys tried to pick ME up, I figured out what girls like as well, meaning that I got confidence as a guy around girls even if my bud isn't around to lift me up with his devil-may-care attitude.

Where was I? Oh, yeah, we had ourselves a rocket launcher, so we went to find the bad guys and blow them up...

-----

With the rocket launcher hidden in a black case held by Lexa, the heavily armed Scooby Gang entered the factory, and looked around. "Nobody here," Cordelia commented with annoyance. "They already left."

"Well, they can't have gone to the Bronze, nobody there now," Willow added with a frown.

"There's only one place where people throng together now," Oz said, and they looked at him. Then they were off.

Behind a pillar sat Spike, listening in. He had the distinct sinking feeling from their tone that they had found a way to beat the odds again. Then he smirked, and opened his right hand. The group he had sent out had returned, and on his hand now lay a medallion and an armband. Spike smirked.

-----

The mall; avatar of American capitalism, several floors filled with stores, and places to buy snack food on your exhausting trek to it. And when you're done with one, there's most likely another right next to it.

The mall; death trap.

The doors opened admitting vampires with a blue demon Judge up front. Drusilla was to its left, and Angelus was to its right. A man came walking up the stairs to the exit, and the Judge simply pointed at him. He screamed as the Judge's cleansing fire surged into him; finding his humanity and burning him to a crisp, before disappearing completely. The Judge took a deep breath, smiling. He walked forward, coming to a small platform in the middle. The stairs went up, and right down. A wooden railing kept people from falling over. Below were throngs of people, enjoying the mall and all it had to offer. In this case; fiery death. The Judge smiled, and stretched out his arms, a tendril of fire surging down and into a human, then to the next, and the next, and so onward. Quickly all the people frozen as the cleansing fire started doing its job.

"Ah!" the Judge exclaimed, and just like that the cleansing fire disappeared, making the people look around confused, and grabbing their chests in pain. A small crossbow bolt was stuck in the Judge's shoulder, and he looked straight ahead. There on the other side of the mall, some twenty meters away, stood Lexa holding a case, with the others around her. The Judge made an annoyed grumble and pulled the bolt free, his wound immediately healing.

With the Scoobies, Buffy put a new bolt in her crossbow, and said, "I still think it's unfair I just get to fire a crossbow."

Down below the humans just looked dumbfounded. "What do you think you are doing?" the Judge asked to the group of people opposing him, tossing the bolt aside. The vampires smiled smugly. "You know no weapon forged by man can kill me."

Lexa smiled broadly, and called across the mall, "Yeah, well, that was then. These days we got a saying; if it first you don't succeed . . ." Lexa smirked, and with a smooth motion released the case, and pulled the rocket launcher up to her shoulder. Her face was more grim now, but was still smirking, as she finished, ". . . invent a bigger a gun."

The vampires recognized the weapon immediately, and with fearful faces jumped and ran away, while the Judge simply asked, "What does that do?"

A moment later Lexa had already pressed the trigger, and a rocket was launched across the distance. It smashed into the Judge and exploded, sending piece of the Judge flying everywhere, and leaving only a lower leg and a foot standing. The people started screaming and running as fast as they could.

"All right," Buffy called with a grim smile. "Gather the pieces and keep them apart just in case. I'll take Angelus, you Drusilla Xan, and the rest the stragglers." Lexa looked down at Buffy with an annoyed look. "What?" Buffy asked her. Lexa rolled her eyes and put the rocket launcher down, then they went into action.

"Gather up the pieces?" Lotion wondered in disgust.

"Right there with you," Cordelia replied, pulling her swords free.

Buffy went down and off to her left toward Angelus, dusting a vampire on the way. Lexa went off to her right, where she saw Drusilla. Behind her Lotion stuffed a stake through a vampire's heart, as the others took in the pieces of the Judge.

Oz came across an arm, and remembering what happened at the party stayed a meter away. Pointing down at it he called, "Arm! Here's an arm."

Lexa rapidly came across Drusilla. "Hey, Dru!" Lexa called.

Drusilla turned around and vamped out, saying, "Nasty vixen." Then she hissed and grabbed to vampires that had accompanied her, and tossed then to Lexa. Then she did the same with another two vampires, who yelled in fear and horror that their mistress would betray them so. Drusilla just turned back around and ran out the exit with all her speed.

Around Lexa were screaming fleeing people. She roundhouse kicked the first vampire that came her way, and punched aside the second. But the third slammed into her and brought her down. She brought her stake up and the vampire on top of her dusted, giving her just enough time to roll out of the way of the third. The vampire groaned at the impact with the ground, and a quick thrust with Lexa's arm reduced him to dust as well. Lexa flipped up smoothly, and saw the first vampire charging her. Another roundhouse kick sent him back to the wall he came from, yelling in pain and anger. Lexa charged forward to the second vampire, and slammed her kneed it in its stomach with all her might. As the vampire doubled over she staked it. She quickly turned back to the first, who came charging her again. With a quick motion of her arm, while ducking and twisting away, made her avoid the vampire's lunge and sent him passed her. A quick thrust with her stake and the vampire was dust.

Lexa then ran out the exit and looked left and right where people were running off, but no Drusilla to be seen. "Fuck," she cursed and sped back into the mall.

With a single punch, Angelus was staggering back till he slammed into the wall.

The lobby with one exit and two elevators was otherwise empty. He laughed and told Buffy, "Is that all?"

He vamped out and attacked her, missing as the Slayer easily ducked beneath his punch. Buffy danced aside, and grabbed his next punched, opening him up for a sidekick to his ribs, and making Angel groan out. "No, that isn't all," Buffy hissed, and rammed an uppercut into his face, that sent him flying backward toward an exit. He landed on the ground, and watched as Buffy drew her stake.

For a moment a little fear filtered in his eyes, then he saw her hesitate. He snickered evilly as he got up, seeing in Buffy's pained eyes. "Well, well, you can't do it," he said dusting himself off, the duster fluttering a bit. "Little miss Slayer can't dust her lover. Ooh."

Angelus laughed, practically cackling. Suddenly Buffy lashed out with her foot, slamming into his balls and launching him off his feet. With a high pitched scream he flew backward and up till he slammed into the corner walls. Hanging there for a moment he groaned, then he fell down. "Give me time," Buffy told him and turned around, walking away.

Angelus cradled his destroyed balls, and started wiggling toward the exit like a seal. His high pitched squeals of pain made him sound like one as well.

Painfully Buffy returned, watching Willow pick up a piece of the judge and dumping it in a small bag. Cordelia, Oz, and Lotion were doing the same, while Giles closed the bags and held out new ones. Lexa came running around from the other side, and walked up to Buffy. Buffy gave her a look that made her frown and she moved on.

"You know," Oz said coolly. "The arm isn't moving, it isn't trying to grab anyone's neck." He got a piece that was half torn apart, and held it up, nothing happened. "I think he's actually, really dead," he observed.

"Hmm," Giles said.

"Oh, thank god," Cordelia muttered, and then turned to Giles. "Does that mean we don't have to pick it up piece by piece?"

"Where is he?" Lexa asked sharply, and the Scoobies turned to him. "Where is he, Buffy?" Lexa asked, and Buffy looked guiltily at him. "I don't see any dust, did you gather it up?"

Tears sprung in Buffy's eyes, and she looked painfully at him, then to her other friends. "I couldn't do it, I couldn't do it, I'm sorry," Buffy whimpered.

"Damn it, why the hell didn't you let me handle him if you couldn't do it?" Lexa told her sharply, obviously angry, while the others looked at the exchange.

"I though I could, but then . . ." Buffy whispered, looking into Lexa's enraged face.

"You didn't kill him?" Lotion shrieked in anger at Buffy.

"Drusilla?" Giles asked Lexa, attempting to keep the situation from a brawl.

Lexa flashed her eyes to the watcher and answered, "She tossed four vamps to me, literally. She got away while I dusted them." Then she looked at Lotion and made a slight shake with her head.

-----

In the factory Angelus came stumbling in cradling his painful balls.

Drusilla was draped around Spike insanely babbling about the nasty Slayer and her nasty friends destroying their beautiful Judge. Spike took Angelus in, and laughed out loud. "So, how are they hanging Angelus," Spike called out loud across the main hall. Angelus turned his head and growled out loud. "Ooh, I'm so scared," Spike said with a smile. "She hit you good, huh, old boy? What's it gonna take to heal? A whole night? Be glad you're a bloody vamp, sire, or you'd be faking your own orgasms from now on." Spike laughed out again - Angelus in no position to attack him - he just glared. Spike then added, "I'm almost glad the Judge was destroyed; really, Angelus, ever since you got back, I've had nothing but fun."

Angelus gave a growl and then moved off to find a place to sleep and heal. Spike just remained laughing, and Drusilla couldn't help but snicker along with him.

-----

A while later the whole Scooby Gang was in the library. Giles was behind the counter, and Lexa paced back and forth in front of him, from the counter to the few stairs to the second level and back. The rest was sitting in at the tables. The mood was depressing to the say the least.

Buffy got up tentatively, and said, "I couldn't do it, I'm sorry, Angel . . ."

"No!" Lexa said whirling to face Buffy, pointing a finger at her. "He's not Angel anymore, don't you get that yet? Angelus isn't Angel, he doesn't even come close. Angelus is the thing that _/killed/_ Angel." Giles nodded solemnly.

"Xander," Buffy said weakly.

Lexa cut anything more of her off, saying, "He was your responsibility; if you couldn't handle it, you should have asked one of us to do it. You said yourself you'd take Angelus, but you didn't."

"Yeah," Lotion added pissed off from her position at the table, "and he doesn't even have that soul anymore either; he's nothing but a killing machine, and- . . ."

"Lotion," Giles said sharply, "Buffy- . . ."

Buffy himself interrupted her watcher, asking Lexa with pain, "Why? Because I'm the Slayer? Is that it?"

"No," Lexa said, and took several steps forward and looking Buffy in the eyes. "Because he was your boyfriend, because doing that nasty with you made him lose his soul; that's why. That made him your responsibility, just like my best friend Jesse was mine."

Jesse! The name suddenly snapped in Buffy's head. The whole Terakan stress had made her forget. 'Jesse McNally' written on that makeshift urn, in that makeshift half-ruined place in the cemetery. Best friend, ten years, and Xander had dusted him? Back in the Bronze that first day, she realized, when Xander hadn't listened, and instead of staying in the sides leaving people out he had gone in anyway.

"It's going to be very simple, Buffy," Lexa spoke with a cold fury, Buffy felt wasn't directed at her, or at least not just at her. "You're going to take your responsibility, or I'm going to take it for you."

"I'm coming with you," Willow suddenly piped up. Buffy's eyes widened. Lexa looked passed Buffy at her best friend. Willow interrupted Lexa before she could started, "Oh, don't even try, buster. If you think I'm going to let you fight three . . . two and a half master vampires, and who knows how many minions and booby traps all on your very own, you've got another thing coming."

Lexa didn't bother arguing; Willow sported the face he and Jesse had once dubbed 'resolve face' and it meant Willow's mind was set and nothing short of death was going to change it. "I'm coming too," Lotion said resolutely. Buffy stayed standing perfectly still.

"So am I," Cordelia said with a grumble.

"Wherever Cordelia goes, I go," Oz said without a hint of emotion.

Giles reset his glasses and said, "Well, I would be remiss in my duties as Watcher and fighter of the darkness if I'd let kids fight while I stayed cooped up in a library."

Lexa looked around the room for a moment, smiled, and then said, "Then it's settled, by tomorrow afternoon, Angelus is dust." Lexa looked at Buffy, and added, "One way or another." Lexa then turned around and stalked out of the library.

-----

"He was your responsibility," Xander hissed, and then vamped out. His impossibly strong hands grabbed Buffy by the throat and bit deeply.

"Yours, Buffy," Joyce said hungry behind her, and sank her own fangs in her arm. Pain lanced through Buffy's body, and she felt her life flow from her. Willow and Giles joined Xander and Joyce, and she screamed; hearing Angelus laughing all around her.

Suddenly everything changed and she weakly slammed against a wooden floor. Still bleeding where the vampires had bitten, she slowly raised herself up, having difficulty doing so. She was in the bronze, and saw herself fighting Luke. Her gaze was drawn to her right where she saw Xander plunge a stake in Jesse's body. As vampire Jesse finished turning to dust, the scene rewound, and Xander stake Jesse again. This happened another time, and then Xander looked up at her, "Your responsibility."

"Buffy," a soulful voice spoke, and Buffy whirled around, looking in Angel's eyes. The vampire came over, hands in his pocket, and then took her in a brace. Smile he dipped down to kiss Buffy, and she smiled back. Just before their lips met, he vamped out and bit down in her neck with a growl.

"Whua!" Buffy exclaimed, jerking awake. Then she sat herself up, and looked around her bedroom, settling on the line of light that came through the curtains that weren't fully closed. After looking at it for a moment, the fear the nightmare induced receding, she whispered, "He's the thing that killed Angel." She looked down at her hands and breasts. Her face hardened and she said, "He's the thing that killed Angel."

Buffy got up, and put on a pair of jeans over her panties. She didn't bother with a braw and single put on a black t-shirt, that fell sexily around her breasts in its casualness. She chose a leather jacket, and stacked up on some stakes, stuffing them abruptly in the jacket. Then she stalked out of her room and out her house without bothering with breakfast, leaving her mother looking annoyed at the breakfast she prepared.

-----

Buffy entered her school. She was early and only a few kids were around. She and the others would have classes till about one o'clock, then they'd go. She entered the library not long after, and found all of them had already arrived. They all looked up as she came down the three steps. She looked at them all, and said, "Angelus is mine."

"You're not going to let him walk away again?" Cordelia asked skeptically.

Buffy turned her head to her left, looking at Cordelia. The cheerleader took an involuntary step back at Buffy's dangerous expression. "That thing killed Angel, and he's going to _/pay/_," Buffy all but snarled.

"Welcome back to the team, Buff," Xander said with a grin. Buffy turned her head to look at him, and she smiled.

"Xander," Willow asked, thinking of something. "Do you think they're still in the factory? Wouldn't they move now they know we know where they are?"

Xander turned to his best friend and asked, "The big bad, arrogant son of a bitch who's basking in the fact that Buffy couldn't get it over her heart to kill him? Hell no."

-----

They stood in front of the factory, and took the place in by daylight. It was a run down place, windows blacked out so the sun couldn't come in. "You guys know the plan?" Buffy said, holding a large stone bowl in her hands.

Lotion nodded, lifting her sword with a feral grin, and said, "Box in. Open windows. Kill."

"You got it," Buffy said. Xander then turned around to the sewer entrance, Lotion following him.

The others walked forward, and Willow lowered her head, muttering spells. She pushed her hands forward, and all the boards boarding up the windows were launched into the factory, sunlight streaming in instantly. Buffy placed the bowl at the entrance of the factory and then they entered.

-----

Inside, pandemonium started right away. Several vamps were immediately cut in the sun's rays and burst into flame, screaming in pain.

"Shit!" Angelus called in rage, looking around. Other vampires entered the main hall as well, as far away from the windows facing the sunlight as they could.

Spike instead, grabbed Dru and started wheeling. "Spike," Drusilla said.

"Not now, luv, we gotta go," Spike told her with authority and they quickly moved off. They wove among some equipment. They came at a door and Spike opened it, then wheeled down a decline with Drusilla in tow. Down below was the sewer and they entered it.

"Hey, Spike."

Spike turned his wheel chair to his right as Drusilla whirled around in the same direction. There were Lotion and Xander. Xander had a stake under his arms folded across his chest, while a smiling Lotion had a curved sword in her right hand. "You didn't think we kept the sewer exit unguarded, did you? So what are you going to do now?"

"Well, first, I'm standing up," Spike said with an evil grin, doing exactly that and vamping out.

"Spike?" Drusilla said with a little surprise herself.

Chuckling, Spike reached inside his leather duster and produced two pieces of jewelry. He said, "Then I'm going to take this lovely medallion 'ere, and give it to Dru. Put it on, pet."

Drusilla took the medallion and looked at it.

"Then I'm going to put on this 'ere armband," Spike said and put on the golden armband with red runes on it and a blue stone in the middle, making Lotion and Xander grimace. They were about to charge in.

"Miss Edith doesn't like it," Drusilla said, stopping the two cold with the ridiculous statement.

Spike rolled his eyes, and looked at Drusilla, telling here, "Tell Miss Edith she can bloody well go to hell with her tastes, or I'm going to beat a few new ones in her."

"Mummy did like it," Drusilla purred and put the medallion and necklace around her neck.

"And now to see if the bloody books were right," Spike said and charged Lotion. He avoided the blade swipe and then landed a punch. To Xander's shock Lotion was launched from her position with a painful scream til she smashed into the stone sewer corner. The stone shattered and pieces of it were flung away.

"Lotion!" Xander called with shock, as the Amazon sank to her knees with a painful groan.

"Oh, bloody hell, yeah, I'm back," Spike snarled as she ran onward to Lotion.

At the same time Xander caught a blur in the corner of his eyes, and the next moment he was slammed painfully up against the sewer side. Drusilla held him there, and grinned evilly. Xander immediately slammed his head into her face. Drusilla backed up, and snarled, vamping out. Then she was a blur again. Xander was shocked, but didn't even have time to widen his eyes before Drusilla's punch sent him off to his left, tumbling through the dry sewer catacombs.

Drusilla stalked toward Xander and said, "Mummy fast now, faster than kitten."

Xander wiped his mouth and saw blood on his hands. He forced himself to stand, and said, "Dru, you really need to pay attention. You're not a mummy, you're a vampire."

Drusilla snarled and was once more reduced to a blur, sending Xander flying with a pained scream. "Nasty kitten, nasty vixen, you're not fun anymore," Drusilla said as she watched Xander tumble twice more before coming to stop. Grunting in pain, Xander held his painful ribs, and made sure he still had the stake firmly in grip. Damn, she was far too fast. He had to get that medallion off of her somehow.

At the corner, Lotion got another devastating blow to her face, making it bruise and bleed. "What's the matter, bitch?" Spike called with happiness as he slammed her face into the stone, making Lotion yell with the impact. "Not strong anymore?" He whirled around, pulling Lotion along and slamming her back first on the corner.

"AAH!" Lotion screamed, and sank to the floor, still clutching her sword knowing if she lost it, it'd be over.

"Oh, yeah, I'm a bloody animal," Spike said with a grin, grabbing Lotion and lifting her easily off the floor by her hair. "Thought you could make fun of old Spike, didn't you? Thought you didn't have to worry about a simple vampire." He slammed his head in her face, and then launched her back he way they had come with a punch to her stomach.

Spike slowly sauntered over and said, "So, got any last words, you Amazon skank?"

Lotion looked up at Spike and forced herself weakly to her legs, and said spitting out blood, "I told future husband I'd hack off your limbs, crush your balls several times and only then dust you. I keep my word."

"You little, arrogant . . ." Spike started pulling his hand back for a powerful punch. "AAH!" he yelled, and looked in shock as Lotion's sword finished slicing through his wrist just above the armband. The Amazon had used every last ounce of strength left in her to muster up the fasted sword stroke she could. The hand turned to dust and the arm band clanged against the sewer wall and then to the floor. Spike immediately lunged for the arm band, he had an another wrist after all. But with a roar Lotion swung the sword again sliced off both Spike's legs.

"SPIKE!" a voice screamed from a short distance away.

Spike screamed hysterically as his legs turned to dust, and his torso dropped to the ground. With another slice Spike's arm that had the remaining hand came off, and dusted. Another slice later the remaining arm did the same. Spike finished a hysterical scream of horror, looking down at his limbless form. Lotion placed herself above his crotch, one leg on either side of him. Spike looked up at the evilly grinning Amazon with fear, his vamp face retreated some time ago. "I keep my word," Lotion spoke with difficulty spitting out some drops of blood that fell on Spike's face.

As Lotion lifted her looming mid-heels, Spike turned his head jerkily from side to side, "No, no, AAAH!"

Lotion's foot rose again, and descended once more. "AAAH!"

At the other end, Drusilla had blurredly slammed Xander with his back against the sewer. Xander gave a painful roar. He was certain the crazy bitch had cracked a few of his ribs. She held up him there, hands at his collar, baring his neck. "Nasty kitten will taste sweet," Drusilla hissed out.

"AAH!" Sounded. And Drusilla's face twisted to concern and looked to her right, where she saw Spike handless. Xander looked down and saw the medallion, having several holes, or windows, made of glass or crystal beneath which there was a gentle blue glow. Spike gave another scream.

"SPIKE!" Drusilla screamed in horror and concern, and started to run blurred to stop the Amazon.

The momentary distraction was all Xander needed. "Chestnuts," his hissed as his left free hand blurred to impossible speeds and grabbed the medallion. With two of his fingers in the holes he crush it. It splintered audibly, sparkling some blue sparkles away. Drusilla stumbled as Xander holding on to the medallion kept her from going onward. A moment later he stabbed his stake through her dead heart with a roar both of pain as well as anger. The insane vampiress looked shocked for a moment, and then crumbled to dust, leaving only a destroyed medallion.

Xander stumbled and sank to his knees then looked over at Lotion, who by now was gleefully stomping Spike's balls over and over, eliciting a new scream of rage over and over. Xander chuckled and the stopped, grabbing his aching ribs. "Lotion," Xander half grumbled and half choked out, "stop before you kill me with laughter."

Lotion looked over to Xander for a moment, seeing him hold his ribs as he forced himself to his feet. Lotion looked down and looked upon the tear-stained face of Spike. "Burn in hell," Lotion said, and then smiling cut off Spike's head.

Xander gave a laugh and Lotion looked over. "Have I told you lately I love you?"

"No, that's much to little," Lotion managed to get out almost happy.

Xander shook his head with a smile. "Let's hope no more vampires come here, huh? Don't think we can handle many in our conditions," Xander asked his friend.

Lotion looked down, grinned and picked up the bracelet and slipped it on. "Oh, I don't know, I think I'd like to dust a few more," Lotion said, making Xander smile.

-----

Upstairs Cordelia easily decapitated a vampire, then moved on to another one. Willow ducked underneath a vampire's clumsy punch and stuck a stake through its heart. Off to the side Oz and Giles tackled a vampire and pulling him off to the ground ran to the side till the sunlight hit it, and they let go, watching the vampire burst into flames. "Perfect to get a barbeque going," Oz commented before turning around and finding the next vampire. They found one hiding, and when it found it was discovered it ran from its hiding place to attack them. Giles jumped aside and the vampire attacked Oz, who back up.

A moment later Giles was on the vampire's back, and yelled, "Now, Oz!"

The guitarist pulled a stake and quickly slammed it into the distracted vampire's heart, making it turn to dust.

"Angelus," Buffy said as she sauntered with confidence and a little sexiness to the middle of the room, to the left of the main table.

Angelus growled and took a few steps to her, until they were some three meters apart, as he said, "I don't give a damn about how much stronger or faster you are, bitch. I'm going to kill you for what you did to me."

Buffy stayed silent, and then moved forward and to the right. Angelus did the same, starting to circle each other in front of the table. "I have a little advantage, of course, Buffy. You can't kill me. What do you think can change in a single night, huh?"

Buffy said nothing, just sizing him up. Angelus vamped out, and snarled, "Don't you have anything to say?"

Buffy stopped her circling and so did Angelus. She stayed silent for another moment, and then answered coldly, "Time's up." Instantly she charged forward, and slammed a powerful punch in Angelus' gut, making him double over with a groan. Buffy followed up with a powerful left to his face.

"Oof!" he exclaimed being launched off to his left, slamming against metal machinery which dented. Roaring with fury Buffy grabbed Angel by his collar and pulled him up and over her. She slammed with all her might into the heavy, solid oak table which broke under the force. Angelus slammed into the ground with the table in his back, and lay gasping in pain on the floor. He kicked out back over his head, slamming into Buffy's face. She stumbled back and saw Angelus turning around and getting up.

"You little bitch," Angelus hissed, ripping the remainder of the table apart and came over wielding it. With a vicious swing he slammed the table across Buffy's face, making her stumbled off to her right with shout of pain. Buffy whirled around, but Angelus was already there slamming the table piece on the other side of her face.

"Argh!" she groaned as she stumbled off to her left and slammed into a piece of machinery, once more groaning with pain.

"You think you can kill me, slut?" Angelus growled out and brought the table down on Buffy's already bleeding face.

"Aah!" Buffy exclaimed sinking to her knees.

Angelus laughed and said, "Better have tried." He swung the table back around.

With yell Buffy forced herself up, and let her fist go directly at the table. It splintered on impact and fell out Angelus' hands in pieces. "Fuck you," Buffy said, and kicked Angelus in his stomach, doubling him over.

"Been there, done that," a bleeding Angelus told her with a grin.

"RAAH!" Buffy screamed, and gave him an devastating uppercut. Angelus was launched almost two meters up into the air before he came down and once again landed painfully in the remains of the table.

Buffy walked over as Angelus worked to get up, groaning in pain. Angelus took a soft look when he realized he couldn't get up in time. "Buffy," he said gently, and Buffy hesitated. He slowly got up, and said, "Please, it's me, Angel. I'm back."

Buffy looked into his eyes, and then saw something. She grimaced, and said, "You're not Angel, you're the thing killed him." Angelus' eyes widened as Buffy suddenly sped up, and yelled, "Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire!" Buffy's fists blurred, and slammed into Angelus torso with enormous force. Yelling with rage, tears staining her face, she rammed punch after punch in Angelus' torso. The vampire jerked with everyone, screaming in pain as a hundred punches and more slammed into him within the space of a single second. Then with a final roar, Buffy let fly a devastating right cross then send the soulless vampire flying through the air till he slammed in another piece of old machinery.

Giles, Oz, Cordelia and Willow watched as Buffy walked over to Angel. "This is the last thing I do for, Angel, the last thing I can do for him," Buffy said with a hoarse throat, pulling a stake from her jacket. A dazed Angelus looked up. "Free him from you. With you dust, he can finally rest in peace." Then the stake came down rapidly and penetrated the vampire's heart. He looked at Buffy's tear-stained face for a moment, and then dissolved into dust.

Buffy took a step back and looked at the dust, tears continuing to stream. Then she sobbed, once, then a second time. She forced herself to walk back out the way she came as crying took over. Her three friends and mentor looked at each other, and wondered what they should do. A few moments later Buffy returned with her makeshift urn, and kneeled down. Crying she went about gathering and shoving Angel's remains into the urn.

Willow slowly walked over and started to help. A few moments later Lotion and Xander joined Giles, Cordelia and Oz, the later two embracing each other. Then Xander walked onward, and knelt on Buffy's free side. He place his hand soothingly on her back, and helped gather the dust in the bowl.

-----

That night Buffy, Willow and Xander walked in the cemetery. Buffy had asked them along, without really saying where they were going. Buffy had tears in her eyes, dreading the answer to what she was going to ask, something she felt was selfish, but wanted to ask anyway. The bluish bowl with Angel's ashes she held in her hands, and having used a thick golden pen, she had written 'Angel' on it.

Quickly Willow and Xander recognized the path though. A bit later the arrived at the place. The urn wall was half-ruined, old. Undoubtedly at least a few decades old. Most niches were empty, in only a few remained ruined urns, who seem to have been smashed; most likely vampires having had some fun. In one niche stood a still fully intact urn with Jesse's ashes; their own private grave, nobody would ever have believed the vampire's ashes were Jesse's, or how the two knew it was his. "I'm sorry," Buffy barely more than whispered. "I'm sorry I wasn't there for you guys." Buffy half-broke down, talking though half-crying and tears streaming from her eyes. "I th-thought you didn't want me butting in; th-that I'd . . ." Buffy gasped for breath, and after two arms wrapped around her waste, she forced out, ". . . intrude up-pon something private. Th-that . . . you w-w-wouldn't want me to be part of this, just new and all, f-f-failing to protect him."

"Buffy," Willow said sadly.

Buffy shook her head as she composed herself a bit, enough to continue, "I know better now. You hated him, Xan, and I still want you to be here, help me, hold me. And you Willow, I know you didn't exactly love him either. I'm asking something very selfish . . . can I . . .?" The last Buffy whimpered out barely audible, unable to bring herself to say anymore, simply motioning the urn to the wall and the empty niche next to Jesse's. Fresh tears sprung in her eyes, and she looked hopeful and pain from one friend to another, and then remained upward to Xander's face, knowing he'd be the real one to give permission. Willow and Xander looked over the small blonde at each other. They only needed an instant of silent communication. As their own tears started to form and run down their faces, Xander looked down. He nodded with a tear-stained smile, and gave Buffy a nudge.

With the relief, Buffy started crying again, out loud. Slowly she walked over, and with Slayer strength easily placed the urn into the free niche next to Jesse's. She backed up, and then felt herself enveloped in a double hug, Xander's longer arms enveloping around both girls.

Buffy stifled her crying after a while, and looked up at Xander. "You hate me, for not killing Angelus right away?" she asked with a small voice.

"Oh, no," Xander said, tears flowing more freely. "I'll never hate you, certainly not for that. I know how difficult it is to do that. I faced it. I tried to convince a demon not to do something stupid." Xander sniffed, as Willow gave a single laugh through her sobs. "I could barely do it; I don't even know for sure if I would have, if the fleeing crowd hadn't bumped into Jesse and moved him forward, into my stake." Xander took a deep breath remembering the event, his nose sniffing with the cries. "All I had to do, was keep the stake up." Xander took Buffy in his arms, and he told her, "I'm sorry for being so angry; I think I put some of my own guilt of deciding to face Jesse alone and failure onto you. I just wished so badly you had told someone of your doubts."

The three went to back to just embracing each other again. A few moments later, Buffy looked up again, and asked, "Where does this leave us?"

The question was loaded with so many meanings, Willow grabbed Buffy tighter both for her own sake as Buffy's. She knew Xander better than anyone alive, and she suspected. "I love you, Buffy," Xander whispered painfully. "I love you as a friend, I love you as more. I'm in love with you in so many ways. You're incredible; you're hero, you've become an amazing one, the way you took him out, despite what you felt for the soul." Xander stopped, swallowing as she saw the pain and dread grow by the moment in Buffy's eyes, he could see her anticipate the 'but'. "But when I think of anything romantic with you now, anything sexy; all I get is squick, and ew, seeing you with a corpse."

"No," Buffy sobbed out, remembering her dream. Curiosity, Xander asking her not to do it, Angel's dusting, Xander's dimming and going to Willow. It had all come true; it just hadn't warned her of Drusilla, but of herself.

"I'm sorry, Buff, I really am, I'll be honest; I don't know if I ever get over that, and if I do, how long it will take; months, years," Xander said, his tears growing stronger as he saw Buffy sank to her knees, Willow going with her. "I'm sorry," he sobbed, "I wish I could just turn it off, but I can't."

Not able to take it Xander turned around, and took a step. "Please stay," Buffy half-coughed half-sobbed out. "Friend." Xander turned back around and knelt down with Buffy taking both girls back in a fierce embrace.

-----

So, there you have it, Ranma. I go squick at any thought about doing something with the only girl I've ever loved and am completely in love with. I can see the same pain in her eyes now that I see in my often enough; the pain of dusting the thing that took over a loved one's corpse, and that's no small pain, which helped put there. A best friend that's in love with me, and I'm developing confusing feelings for, making me half-feel like I'm cheating on the girl that has me go 'squick' and the same best friend who's learning magic from the young woman Buffy's decided to banish. Learning to CONTROL magic, to be exact, so she'd never again turn into the all-magic puppet she'd been recently under Deo's manipulations. Willow can't give that up, learning control, guaranteed that's going to come crashing down upon us soon as well.

In summation, Ranma, welcome to my life on the Hellmouth. You were saying?

Xander.

PS: Write me soon., preferably with some uplifting stuff.

Author's notes:

Few, done! Just before my vacation in a day. This was one powerful ending, and hopefully a funny lead in. As always: give me feedback.


	25. part 25

Five vampires stood in front of the factory. One was in front, wearing a new pair of glasses, balding and heaving a beard. A smile crept up his as took the glasses off of him and steadily walked forward, his companions following. He tossed the glasses forward, they fell to the ground and then crushed them casually beneath his feet. After all; what did a vampire with vampire-enhanced vision really need glasses for? A bit later they were inside the main hall, and he looked around the empty place with a big grin.

There was some stumbling, and from a highly stacked metal tube a vampire cam crawling carefully. Two more came out of different hiding places. "Well, look at that, Marius," Dalton spoke with a superior grin, "the master vampires stayed put in the place the slayer and palls knew - and they're all dust. Surprising? I think not."

His companions snickered, one of them, Marius, stepping forward to equal footing. The vampire wore a leather jacket, a silk red blouse underneath, and a pair of jeans to finish it off. He looked sophisticated, with enough hint of casualty to make look intelligent, powerful and rich, coming into money on a young age, whenever that was, and whether that was actually true.

"Dalton, you little coward," the vampire that came out of hiding first hissed. He walked over with all his height. The vampire must have been easily over six foot tall; and had muscular arms - he looked very strong. His vampiric face was out just like the other vampires, and he stalked over to the brainiac vamp. "How dare you speak like that about the greatest masters that ever were. You left them, hid, while Angelus, Drusilla, and Spike killer of two Slayers fought to there death, you weak little man." The vampire grabbed Dalton by the collar obviously intending to hurt him severely.

"I'm not a man," Dalton answered him, and with a swish of his hands pulled a stake from inside his jacket and imbedded it in the heart of the vamp. He looked surprised and then turned to dust. The faces of the other two vamps that had come out of hiding turned from anger to surprise in no time. Dalton casually put the stake back, and rubbed the dust of the other vamp from his clothes, while speaking, "Just because I worked for a duo of quite powerful master vampires doesn't mean I'm weak - it just means I wasn't as strong as the three of them."

Clean, Dalton took a deep unnecessary breath, and said, "Well, now, we've tried brute force, overwhelming numbers, assassins, complete insanity, supposedly unkillable apocalyptic demons . . . how about we try intelligence for a change? Hmm?"

There came no argument, and he nodded. "Good, follow me you two, it's smarter to _/leave/_ from where the Slayer and her friends can find you," Dalton said, and then turned around, and walked back out, Marius directly on behind him, practically beside the book vampire. Behind that the other vampires followed.

-----

Buffy dried the last of her tears as she stood in front of her house. She had been with Xander and Willow at Xander's place. After her breakdown in the cemetery they brought her there to cheer her up as best as they could. Then she had left and returned home, finally. She looked with dread at the front door, not quite knowing what to say to her mother. Finally she mustered her courage and entered the house.

"Hey, Buffy."

Buffy turned around and saw her mother sitting on the couch. Joyce placed her hand on the couch left next to her. In an instant, Buffy couldn't figure out why she ever dreaded coming home to her mother. She walked over quickly, sat down and let herself fall into her mother's hug. Lying with her head on her mother's shoulder, tears escaped her again. But the crying wasn't the horrible pain of loss with her friends, it was a soft, cathartic, cleansing sobbing. Joyce hugged her daughter close and whispered, "I see the world didn't come to an end."

Buffy swallowed, and whispered, "Xander blew the thing up with a rocket launcher yesterday."

Joyce looked surprised, unseen by Buffy, and she said, "Don't tell me how he got it. So what happened today, that you needed to run out."

"Angel," Buffy said a little louder than a whisper, crying softly, "he lost his soul, I had to dust the demon that wore his face."

"Oh, honey," Joyce said and kissed Buffy on her hair, rubbing and hugging her little girl.

"Surprise."

Buffy opened her eyes and sat up abruptly, Joyce still holding her. In the door to the kitchen stood Xander, and he entered the room. Behind and around him Buffy's other friends poured in. Xander was breathing slightly heavy, as was Willow - they had obviously raced her home. Holding a cake with seventeen candles Xander strode forward, saying, "I know you're not exactly in the mood for it, but there was no way we could let the presents go to waste, let alone the cake." Xander reached the low coffee table, and the others came up around him, Willow right next to him. He set the cake down.

"Yeah, it's a little late, and will probably sound hollow," Willow said with a wistful smile, "but happy birthday."

Buffy looked around. Lotion was to the left, Oz having an arm wrapped around Cordelia next to her. Xander and Willow of course, and Giles to the kindergarten friends right. "Presents?" Buffy said, unable to keep a smile of her face. It didn't fully reach her eyes, a strange mixture of melancholy and happiness that her friends were here, throwing her a birthday party after all.

"Cake first, I'm hungry," Cordelia said sourly, although Buffy could see the twinkle in Cordelia's eyes. She shook her head just a bit; Cordelia jokingly being selfish? The world was doomed. The thought entered her mind for a fleeting moment, bringing the smile fully up to her eyes.

"All right," Buffy said and bent forward. She blew, and all the candles went out instantly - some of the candles were also launched off the cake and splattered her friends, along with some whipped cream. Buffy looked shocked for a moment as she saw Willow look surprised, Xander scoop up a glob of whipped cream, and Cordelia give a shocked shriek at her dress being ruined by whipped cream. The Buffy laughed out loud, and then Joyce, Giles and Lotion joined in. Then Xander and Willow and finally Cordelia; while Oz opted to stay true to his stoic self and gave a bright smile.

"Presents," Willow said enthusiastically once the laughter was over, pulling a box in wrapping from her back and handing it to Buffy.

-----

Willow was sitting in a lotus position on the library floor, meditating with Jenny across from her. She had five heavy books floating in the air, slowly circling in between them. Jenny was very uncomfortable. She had thought that her training with Willow was over, but the budding witch had found her and dragged her to their appointment training session during both their free period now. Willow had actually scolded her for being late. Giles was busy with his books at the counter, and they hadn't spoken. Now the situation was the reverse of a month or two ago. The bell rang, signaling the end of the period, and the beginning of lunch hour.

A little while later Lexa and Lotion entered the library. Lotion in flattering tight jeans and a smooth top that accentuated her breasts. With time passing by, there were no Chinese dress shops around in Sunnydale, and although a long drive to LA would allow for a rare Chinese clothes shop run by a Chinese woman, it was a long drive, so Western clothes filtered in her wardrobe among her Chinese ones. Besides, the shop wasn't Amazon, just Chinese, and Amazon clothing was a bit more . . . Amazonian to euphemistically say than the standard Chinese clothes. Her dark brunette hair with tails and ribbons was still all girly yet tough though, making her still look exotically beautiful despite her less exotic clothing. Lexa in turn was wearing a one-piece, black mini-dress, that made her look like heaven incarnate. She wore a sexy grin, and took Lotion in casually as they walked in together. Lotion pretended not to notice, but her happiness that her future husband-wife wasn't oblivious to her charms was obvious by the twinkle in her eyes.

Five heavy books slammed loudly to the floor. "Willow?" Jenny asked, and she looked around, seeing Lotion and Lexa. She looked back at Willow and told her softly, "That shouldn't disrupt your concentration."

"Sorry," Willow said, annoyed with herself, as well as a little frightened - she knew what losing control meant.

"Giles," Lotion said and placed a ring with shimmering jewels and intricate designs on the counter.

"Hmm? Oh," Giles offered in return and walked over. "What is this?"

"Spike wore it; gave him super strength, even more super strength than vampiric super strength," Lotion explained seriously.

"Indeed?" Giles asked with a little surprise, and Jenny and Willow got up to go over and look at it.

"I had to cut of the vamp's hand or he would have won," Lotion added looking down at the ring. "I tried it out on myself this morning, and it boosts my strength as well. I do not cheat, however."

"And she can handle a couple of vamps on her own anyway," Lexa cut in, making eye contact with Willow and giving her a sexy smile. The redhead swelled at the action, and returned the smile. "Some of us have much more use for one like this. Cordelia - although quite strong and getting stronger - is nowhere near us, Oz is just a guy, and although you're tough Giles, and Willow and Jenny have magic, you don't have serious strength. Someone, I'm thinking Oz, wear this thing during fights, and we have another super strong warrior on our side."

"That is an interesting proposal," Giles spoke in his usual British understating manner. "Before we do that, we should research it though, find out what it is exactly and that it doesn't have unwanted side effects, short term or long term, when one uses it."

"Cool, research party!" Willow exclaimed, and they all looked at her. "Hey, everyone has things that excites them, mine is the pursuit of knowledge, sue me!"

"Thirst for knowledge is a good trait," Giles said with a nod, pulling an old book from below the counter. From the few words still readable on the cover, it was something of a compendium for mystical artefacts. "Of course, with knowledge should also come the wisdom to use it," Giles said casually. Jenny flinched slightly, feeling the jab at her as if piercing her heart; she had hidden what she knew, who she really was, and that instead of waiting a day with her newfound knowledge about Angel's curse's loophole, she should have 'had the wisdom' to tell them right away, before the whole unfortunate event.

The library doors opened, audibly in the back ground. "Hey, guys, how's everything? No . . . What's she doing here?" Buffy's voice rang out, going from nice to sub-zero the moment she saw Jenny.

The gypsy took a step back, ready to leave, when Willow said evenly, "Training with me."

Buffy in a casual loose jeans and loose top, hair partially messed up, showing off she hadn't been in the mood to work much on her appearance, in turn showing she was still shook up, took several steps toward Willow. "Why?" she asked with a mixture of hurt, betrayal and anger. "She's a spy, she betrayed us."

Willow took a step forward closing the distance between the two friends two barely forty centimeters, and she said with an edge to her voice, "Because she's the only one who can. Ripper over there knows magic, but only about unleashing it hope for a nice chaos to enjoy. Jenny can teach me control; and I experienced being out of control of the magic, Buffy. Not something I'm going to repeat if it's up to me, and it is."

"Giles?" Buffy asked her Watcher for help.

Giles obviously did not like being asked about the subject. He had a crush on Jenny, and just not taking her calls and giving her the silent treatment hurt like hell. He wanted to forgive her, and only his loyalty to Buffy as his Slayer kept him from doing that. Of course, he pretty much felt like he was the other young women in the library watcher as well. "I-I'm with you, Buffy, but . . . it's a public library, I can't throw her out unless she makes too much of a ruckus," he smoothly evaded any responsibility. In the mean time, Lexa had tried to sneak out - too late.

After giving a death glare to Giles, Buffy turned half around and said, "Xander- Lexa, tell her."

Lexa froze mid-step, three steps away from the rest.

"Yeah, Lexa, tell her," Willow added her hands across her chest.

Lexa slowly turned around. She raised her hands in a warding off gesture and said with a nervous smile, "Ah, well, I'm not getting in between you two. You just fight it out, preferably without the actual fighting, and then tell me how to treat Jenny. Okay? Okay." She reached over, grabbed Lotion by the hand, and in an act of mercy pulled her along in her rapid flee from the library.

Buffy twisted back around and looked at the determined Willow. "Fine," Buffy said bitterly, twisted on her heel, and stalked out of the library.

"Well," Giles spoke with all the control he could muster, "it seems I will be researching this ring on my own, unless you help me out, Willow?"

Willow turned to Giles and said gently, "Let me get my lunch, for lunch period you have my brain - not literally of course."

Jenny stayed for a moment, not certain what to do. Giles had already turned back as Willow left the library to get her lunch, and then she decided to leave and only be in the library when Willow took her there for training. Hopefully over time they could all find it in their hearts to forgive her, as Willow seemed to have done.

-----

A few days later

Early evening

Buffy waved as the car drove off. The car honked twice. Smiling she went inside of her home, a backpack on her back. "Hey, Buffy!" Joyce's voice called from the kitchen, preparing herself a sandwich. "You still need diner?"

"No, dad took me to a restaurant after the ice show," Buffy answered joining her mother in the kitchen.

Joyce smiled and asked her, "So how was the show?"

"Fantastic," Buffy answered with a smile. "It was so beautiful. Twists, turns, somersaults and all of that on that slippery ice."

Joyce looked at her daughter. "Okay, so I've seen it before and I can probably do it myself, but dad was there, I sat next to him, we talked, we had quality father-daughter time; we could have been at mud wrestling . . ." Buffy said with a sad smiled.

"You missed him, huh?" Joyce asked her daughter.

"Yeah, I see him so little since you got divorced," Buffy said with a momentary sad smile. Then she brightened up and added, "And after . . . what I had to do . . . a night away from this place. It was just what I needed."

"I'm glad you had a great time," Joyce told her and came over to share a quick hug.

Buffy took the backpack off, opened it and pulled several boxes saying, "And presents! Presents are always good, especially when dad feels he should overcompensate for not being there for me every day." She pulled removed the already torn re-wrapped wrapping, showing a short, black evening dress. The second box held a beautiful necklace to go with it. The third and final box earrings. "I'm guessing he had female help with picking it out," Buffy said taking in the present with sparkling eyes.

Joyce chuckled, saying, "I'm sure he did."

-----

"Ah, finally," Ryoga, the eternal lost boy told no one looking out to the docks from his position on the ship. He had taken a job on the thing, cleaning the deck and doing more chores. "Back in Tokyo. With this new technique, I will beat Ranma once and for all! I just have to find Nerima," he said with a deadly smile.

Then the sign on the docks became close enough to read, and Ryoga did. 'Welcome to Sunnydale California.' Ryoga's eyes widened in shock. "NO! Not this place again!" Ryoga shouted in anger. He deflated, hanging over the railing when one of the crew members backed up into him. Ryoga's eyes widened, balanced, and went over. "Aaah!"

SPLASH!

A moment later a brown piglet broke the water down below, squeaking with anger, glaring hatefully at the ship . . . that came ever closer. The piglet's eyes widened, and then quickly turned around and started swimming for its life, screeching all the way.

-----

Grumbling Ryoga walked aimlessly in Sunnydale; having gone from one side to the other and back again several times over. "This looks familiar," Ryoga muttered looking down the street, taking in a terrace having five tables with some chairs. The shop it belonged to had a sign that read in flowing letters, 'The Amazon Dragon - Authentic Chinese and Amazon food.'

Ryoga's eyes twitched with annoyance when he remembered the place. Obviously the woman had added some outside dining opportunities. Deo stepped outside, and looked around. "Ah, Ryoga!" Deo exclaimed with a large grin, which made Ryoga extremely uncomfortable. Deo reached him, put a friendly arm around his shoulder, and said, "Perfect time. My female clientele was going down a bit, I take it you need another job to pay for another passage to Japan?"

Ryoga groaned and then his right hand balled into a fist. "Ranma," Ryoga hissed dangerously, "somehow this is your fault too, I know. I will kill you for this, right after I kill you for everything else."

-----

Their lips touched feverishly together, kissing each other hungrily. Xander was sitting on the passenger seat, and Willow was in the driver's seat. There are arms were wrapped around each other and fondling everywhere. "Hm, mh, Willow," Xander said breaking the heated kiss, looking at the hot redhead. The low-cut top showed off her small, but ample cleavage. Her lipstick was no longer fully present, partially probably on his lips. Along with the smouldering look in her eyes, she looked positively, breathtakingly hot. "I can't believe your mom lent you the car," he said softly trying to control where things were going. He had one bad experience with letting hormones get the better of him, so he was determined to put pressure on the breaks, and make a more informed decision.

It had been two weeks since Buffy's birthday, and Xander's thinking of her in romantic was had slowed down. For one thing he actively sought not to, because he hated feeling 'icky' about the amazing heroine, (very possibly former) lover and friend that was Buffy Summers. Willow and Buffy's relationship was strained, albeit they were still friends, and they still regularly spent time together. As a result, Xander and often Lexa whenever Buffy felt like 'girl talk', had been together more in 'friend' capacity - alone. Similarly, Xander and Lexa also hung out more with Willow - alone - in both friend and more capacity.

Outside of the car were bushes, grass, a sandy path, and a bit onward more cars. It was Sunnydale's make out place for those with cars, and there were plenty of people and cars that were only meters from Willow and Xander's car using the place for the same reason. "Well," Willow said desperately, leaning forward again, "I don't think she notices me enough to know I'm gone. If she misses the car more than me, I'm officially going for emancipation as well." Before Xander could say anything else, her hands were back rubbing his chest and her lips pressed to his, with her tongue exploring his mouth.

"Mmh," Xander muttered forcing his head back again. "Will, slow down." Willow pouted, almost making Xander's resolve crumble before overwhelming force. Somehow though, he managed to control himself. "I think we should, you know, slow down. This is going way too fast. I know what too fast got me last time - heart ache, pain, broken friendships."

"What makes you think I want to have sex with you?" Willow asked with a superior smirk.

"Uh," Xander said, looking down, where Willow's right hand was gently stroking his crotch, where behind Xander's jeans lay hidden a raging erection. Her left hand was gently rubbing the left side of his chest, her palm on his nipple.

Willow blinked and said, "Let me rephrase that; what makes you think I want to have intercourse with you?" Xander looked confused, which made Willow's heart fill with love. Still her loveable doofus despite the body, and confidence upgrade. "Xan, I'm not ready," Willow said softly with smile, "Hands, mouths, lips, tongues, naked bodies, oh yes, but not . . ." Willow let the sentence hanging and looked deeply into his eyes.

"I don't know, we were just tr- . . ." Xander was cut off by Willow's new oral attack. A deep kiss that she broke and then started kissing, nuzzling and nibbling down Xander's chin and neck, which made him gasp with the sensation. "Oh, boy."

There was a feint sound, and Xander frowned, then pushed Willow back from him, hands on her upper arms. "Did you hear that?" Xander asked, frowning as he tried to listen.

Willow listened, and then smiled. "Nope, nothing." She went back to kissing Xander.

There was a new sound, of plants being ripped, or torn. Xander pushed Willow back, and said, "Now I _/know/_ I heard something."

"Oh, come on," Willow said with a smile, humoring him. She was antsy, her body was practically burning up, her nipples were hard and she was moist down there. Her desires were doing the thinking for her, making her miss the fact she knew Xander wouldn't say that for nothing. She leaned forward, going to kiss and said, "Just rel- . . . Aah!"

Behind Xander, outside the car, in the window there was suddenly a beast; a grey-furred beast. A canine snout slammed a moment later against the window and it cracked but held. The monster growled and roared and prepared to go again. Xander turned around and saw it slam into the door again, probably denting. With a grimace he opened the door and slammed it into the overgrown dog, and it backed up a little. Xander got half out of the car, his right foot on the ground, and then with a quick jab slammed his fist across the beast's snout. It tumbled backward, yipping in pain, then righted itself, looking as Xander got out of the car with purpose - an almost bloodthirsty grin on its face. The pain of just one hit, coupled with the grin it all to well understood, made it turn and run away quickly - this was one being that was not prey but predator like itself, and prey wasn't worth fighting one that strong over.

"Ah, damn!" Xander exclaimed seeing the monster disappear in the bushes and trees. He didn't have a flashlight, and so there was no way to track the thing. "It got away," Xander said.

The fright caused by the beast's attack, and bled out almost all of Willow's arousal, and so she said, "Ah, let's go home, and tell Giles in the morning."

"Okay, what are you going tell your mom?" Xander asked casually as he got back into the car.

Willow looked at him, and then realized he was talking about the damaged door. "I'll think of something," she said as she started the engine.

-----

For a change the Scoobs met in the parking lot in front of the school. Giles arrived holding a paper, and said, "Listen to this. A body was found heavily mauled and half eaten. This seems to be our expertise, and no vampire for a change of pace."

"Unless it's a really, really, really disturbed vampire," Cordelia having sunglasses on her head, and wearing a grey mini-dress said. She looked stunning, and hated the fact that Oz wasn't here.

"Indeed, although highly unlikely," Giles replied with a neutral face.

Willow had Xander's arm around her, leaning against a car next to Cordelia. Two pairs of female eyes attempted to burn holes in Willow's hand. She spoke up, "I think we saw it last night. Some hairy monster slammed into the car wanting to eat us."

"Really?" Giles asked intrigued.

"Yeah, I chased it off, it'll have a nasty bruise though. It was of the canine variety, I'm thinking: werewolf," Xander explained with a lopsided grin.

"Werewolf?" Lotion asked with some annoyance. "I hate dogs."

"Who doesn't like sweet puppy dogs?" Buffy accused Lotion who glared back at the girl.

"Listen, pig-nosed girl . . ." Lotion started.

"How did your mom take the damage," Xander quickly interrupted, directing the question at Willow.

"Oh!" Willow said with an enthusiastic face, "Pretty good. I told her it was probably some hooligan down the street and she bought it. She shrugged and said insurance would cover it. Never even noticed I wasn't at home."

Giles frowned at Willow's statement, and then smiled saying, "A werewolf, you say, Xander? If your hypothesis is true, we would have a month to prepare for its next night out on the town so to speak."

"A day," Willow interrupted. "Some nine hours actually." Giles looked questioningly at her. "Tonight's the full moon," she added.

Giles frowned for just a moment, thinking about full moon. "Interesting, that would mean the popular myth about only coming out on the night of the full moon are in error," Giles said and then started walking toward the stool with a spring in his step. "A werewolf. It's one of the classics."

The Scoobs fell in step behind their librarian, and with crunched face Buffy remarked, "Giles needs a hobby."

"He needs a girlfriend, or should I say 'his' girlfriend," Lotion corrected, making Buffy glare at the Amazon.

"Either way," Xander said in attempt to keep the peace, "I guess we'll be out werewolf hunting tonight."

"Yeah, so I can get my clothes all dirty again," Cordelia complained lightly.

"You need Slaying clothes, clothes only for Slaying, easy fitting stuff you can move in," Buffy gave her sagely, veteran slayer advice. "You could go shopping this afternoon."

"I'm know, I'm not stupid," Cordelia bit back.

-----

"So exactly why are we going to have lunch there again, Buffy?" Xander complained as the Scooby Gang, Lotion included slowly walked toward The Amazon Dragon. "She's an evil witch, remember?" Buffy and Willow were up front, then came him and Lotion, and finally Cordelia and Oz.

"Mother evil," Lotion agreed, not liking the idea of her future husband and her friends in reach of her mother's next potential scheme.

"But we haven't been there in ages, and evil witch or not, she's an amazing cook," Buffy said, as Willow walked with some annoyance. She too had no desire to eat at . . . scratch that, there was a bare-chested Ryoga bringing some peoples' orders to a table outside.

"Oh, of course, I see," Xander said sarcastically noticing Ryoga himself now too, while Buffy attempted to hide her lecherous smile, "Yep, she's such a good cook, or should I say recruiting agent."

"That's not . . ." Buffy started.

Flatch. Slowly Lexa now tightening out the top while the jeans were a bit loose turned around and looked at Oz screwing the cap on his thermos with a seriously pissed off face. "I just thought you'd appreciate the scenery a bit more as a girl than as a guy," Oz remarked as if discussing the weather. The girls couldn't help but giggle.

"Very funny, Oz, _/very/funny/_," Lexa said tersely.

-----

"Sunnydale can be a dangerous place at night," the female instructor spoke in the gym. "Everyone should know a little self-defense and that's why we're going to be teaching you a bit." The students were all sitting on the stands of the gym. They were wearing their gym clothes in Sunnydale colors: red and yellow. Some wore different color tunics, but all had yellow and red in their outfits somewhere. "Form up in groups of four."

The students got off their buts and came down. Larry, the tall blonde jock, had a gauze on his upper arm. A few more guys were around him, as he said, "Man, it's still painful. Getting bit by a dog is worse than it sounds."

Oz cut in front of him casually, Cordelia behind him and he held up his right index finger which had a plaster on it, "I know what you mean. My cousin Jordy turned one and got his first teeth, nasty things."

Larry looked oddly at him as he and Cordelia walked onward. Larry suddenly dismissed them and switched courses. He saw a lovely brunette girl and walked over to her. Leering he said, "Hey, Melissa, I'm going to be your partner. Just how realistic to do you want the groping to be?"

Melissa looked with a little fear at him, and then Cordelia suddenly stood in between her and Larry. Oz casually mosied on over and stood next to Melissa. Cordelia gave the dumb jock an evil smirk that made him swallow.

Willow, Buffy, Xander, and Lotion were the least enthusiastic about it all, and came last, walking over slowly. "Uh, Mrs. Ashton, do we really have to do this?" Xander asked as the four of them slowly found a place, and Buffy noticed with a bit surprise that she was with Willow in the same group.

"Of course, like I said, this could save your life," Mrs. Ashton answered him, as the other students started to find a place.

"What he means to say is, this is kids' stuff," Lotion clarified somewhat annoyed that she, an Amazon warrior, would be expected to take classes with a bunch of rookies. She should be teaching this class! She'd mop the floor with the instructor, literally. "The four of us are advanced martial artists, doing some exercises is a waste of time."

"Is that so, Ms. Lu? Can you demonstrate a shoulder throw then?" Mrs. Ashton asked the Amazon.

Lotion rolled her eyes in annoyance. Demonstrate a mere shoulder throw? The things she could demonstrate . . . "Of course," she said, facing the other students and gesturing to Xander.

He grinned and grabbed her around her neck. Lotion immediately bent forward while taking a step back, and hurled Xander over her neck. She was careful and so Xander smoothly landed on his ass on the mat, and got without problem.

Mrs. Ashton nodded with satisfaction, and said, "If you noticed, Lotion performed the throw perfectly. One needs to both bend over pulling your attacking along, as well stepping back to use your and your attackers bodies' momentum. Very important." Mrs. Ashton gestured for the students to try. She turned around to the four who were claimed to be 'advanced martial artists' and said, "I'd like to see what you can do before I let you train on your own."

"Sure," Xander said with a smirk and walked off to behind the students. Lotion followed him, while Willow and Buffy walked off the corner diagonally from Xander and Lotion, next to the row of students that occupied the bottom left corner.

As Mrs. Ashton prepared to take in Xander and Lotion, the students made their attempts at shoulder throws, most of whom who failed. Cordelia was about to throw Larry, when he groped her leg, and said, "Come on, Cor, show me what you can do, I'll make it more real for you."

Cordelia give a small growl, and then made the perfect shoulder throw. Unlike Lotion though, she was not gently or careful, and simply yanked Larry onward, and put all her might in bringing him down. With a painful yowl he landed hard on the mat, which meant he didn't get much pain at all. With a quick motion Cordelia slammed her palm into his forehead, and with a painful grunt he went unconscious. She grinned, as everyone looked over at the unconscious jock and she said, "Oops. I don't know my own strength."

Oz bent over to Melissa and said gently, "Remind me never to piss my girlfriend off." The girl gave him a smile.

Xander and Lotion turned their attention back to each other, and looked at each other. Xander smirked, as the two completed their battle stances. Mrs. Ashton looked, and then her jaw dropped. With speed and a quick yell Xander and Lotion went to each other and traded blows. Lotion deflected one of Xander's while she ducked backward, to avoid the second one. Xander jumped up in the air and kicked his right foot out. Lotion stepped out of the way to her right, ready to capitalize on Xander's weakness. Xander though twisted his body around its axis and made a roundhouse punch. Lotion ducked underneath and kicked out, landing her foot squarely in Xander's stomach as he landed. Xander groaned while grabbing her foot. Lotion jumped up, kicking out with her other leg. Xander bent backward avoiding the kicking, flipping over on his hands and onward on his feet. Lotion flipped high through the air and landed, as Xander attacked. She blocked his first punch, but got a left hook across her chin. She bent back a bit with the hit, using her hands to Xander's hands aside opening his stomach. With Xander's momentum still going forward, Lotion ducked and landed her hands with all her might in Xander's stomach. He groaned as he was launched off his feet, flying back to land against the wall six meters away . . . with his feet. He jumped off of the wall, closing the distance to the advancing Lotion much quicker than she anticipated. She doubled over as his right punch landed in her stomach. He ducked and twisted to his left as Lotion kicked out, landing his elbow in her side. Xander turned to throw a punch, which she grabbed and immediately twisted to pull him up and over her body that twisted under his arm. Xander was pulled off the ground, but he made a somersault to land on his feet instead of his back. He immediately twisted around with an elbow to Lotion's face that she only barely avoided.

Lotion flashed Xander a grin, and Xander's eyebrows raised. Quickly stepping forward she yelled, "Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire!" With devastating speed an enormous amount of punches came at Xander. He had figured that Lotion had reached the level to perform the technique as well about a weak earlier, but had of yet to perform the technique properly. Lotion's grin had warned him, making him realize she had perfected it in her private training. His own chestnuts allowed him to block and parry each of her punches, then with a quick leg swipe, sent the Amazon down to the floor.

"Okay!" Mrs. Ashton called out, while the students still looked with large eyes at the amazing fight. Xander and Lotion looked over at her, and she said, "You've proven it, you can train your own stuff, there's nothing I can teach you two." Xander helped Lotion up with a grin.

Only three students in the long line of groups of four weren't stunned. One was the unconscious Larry, the second the unflappable Oz who had seen it before anyway, and the final one was Cordelia who just shook her head muttering, "Showoffs."

Meanwhile, Buffy smiled at Willow and said, "I'll go easy on you."

"Don't patronize me," Willow returned as she brought her arms up, her sides facing Buffy, one arm back and one arm front. Willow made a come-here gesture with her forward open hand. Buffy nodded, her smile faltering and kicked out at Willow's face. The redhead parried the kick with her front right hand while taking a step back. Then she threw a punch to Buffy's stomach who blacked it, while throwing her own. Willow reared back, only barely avoiding Buffy's punch. With a yell Buffy pressed her advantage with a kick, but Willow crouched down, and then jumped up with her own battle cry, landing a powerful uppercut directly on Buffy's chin. The Slayer was launched off her feet with a groan of pain, then landed on the mat. She got up instantly, a pissed off look on her face.

"Oh, you bitch," Buffy said lowly, and then charged forward. Willow looked surprised and needed every last little bit of speed she could muster to block the Slayer's first punch. Suffice it say, there was no way she could stop the second one landing in her stomach. She doubled over, only get a roundhouse kick to her face and drop to her back.

"Ow," Willow muttered from the floor, and looked up to see the petite blonde towering over her. "A little restraint would be nice," Willow whimpered and then was lifted off the floor by her collar by two impossibly strong hands.

"I thought you didn't want me to patronize you," Buffy asked her, as some of the other students looked over at them.

"Not going easy and using everything you got are not the same - somewhere in between would be nice," Willow told Buffy and then pulled up both her feet and slammed them in Buffy's face.

"Urgh!" Buffy gurgled out as she staggered backward and let go of Willow who landed painfully on her backside. Willow got up and looked warily at her friend. Buffy charged and made a clumsy right cross. Willow avoided it, twisting aside to the left, and moved to grab Buffy's next hit, a bit of her old muscle memory still present. Willow's eyes widened as she saw Buffy twisted around, grinning at her, in a completely different way she'd have moved several months earlier.

"Oh, boy," Willow muttered realizing her mistake, just before two open hand palms slammed in her stomach. "OOF!" she said, being launched off her feet and landing three meters further. "Ow," Willow muttered looking up at the ceiling.

-----

The bell rang, and Willow, aching all over, forced herself to her feet after Buffy had put her down once again. A little across from them Xander and Lotion stopped their furious sparring session. The other students stopped what they were doing as well, which was either performing an instructed maneuver, or gaping at Xander and Lotion.

Buffy had turned and started walking out the door. "Buffy," Willow said with a slight groan in her voice. Buffy turned around and smiled at Willow waiting for her to speak. "We need to talk, in private."

After changing clothes, Willow and Buffy found a quite place in the school's courtyard. "So what's the matter?" Buffy asked perkily.

"What's the matter? You know what's the matter. You just spent the entire hour pummeling me," Willow accused Buffy.

Buffy looked sourly at Willow and told her, "We were sparring."

"Yeah, right. Usually sparring includes giving advice and teaching someone when they're clearly less than you are, you just beat me up," Willow said, rubbing her sour left shoulder in demonstration. "We've hung out together in the past few weeks, Buffy, we've talked, but never quite, and you know it. It's usually one way and superficial. This is about Jenny."

"So what if it is?" Buffy countered, obviously pissed.

"Buffy, I've never known you to carry a grudge like this," Willow said somewhat concerned and feeling bad, "You've all but forgiven Lotion for anything she did, same with Cordelia, and you dragged us to Deo's restaurant. I'm pretty sure at the very least the last one did far worse than Jenny. She just made an mistake, Deo deliberately went after us."

Buffy looked down. "If she . . . I wouldn't have . . . and then . . . I wouldn't have lost . . ." Buffy muttered, obviously tears threatening to start to come.

Willow frowned, feeling pained and guilty at Buffy's pain. She shimmied closer and twisted her upper body from a confrontational forward to a companionable side, and slinging an arm around Buffy's shoulder. "Angel?" Willow asked gently, pained.

Buffy shook her head. "Xander - happy means no necro-sex, and that means no disgust," Buffy whimpered defeated and let herself slump against Willow.

"She's sorry, Buffy. She screwed up, yes. She hurt us all, but she only just found out, and she was part of the gypsy tripe long before she met us. Forgive Jenny, please," Willow whispered gently holding Buffy tight. "Don't you think it's time? If not for me, you must have seen Giles, I think he's hurting more than you do." Willow took in Buffy's reaction. The blonde stopped her pity attack, sat up straight and with raised eyebrows looked at Willow. The witch could easily see the new pain on Buffy's face - she had definitely noticed Giles. Do you really want to keep putting him through that?"

Buffy sighed, and said, "Fine."

-----

Buffy walked into the computer classroom. Jenny was behind her desk. "Uh, Miss Calender?" Buffy prompted.

Jenny's head jerked up, instantly a guilty face on it directed at Buffy. "Yes, Buffy?" she asked weakly.

"Hi, uhm . . ." Buffy started wondering how to do this. She still wasn't ready to forgive her, but she could tolerate her, and get back the closeness she had with Willow and Giles. "Giles . . . he misses you."

"Oh," Jenny said weakly. "Yes, I- uh . . . I think I noticed that."

"You don't have to stay away from us, any of us," Buffy said softly, pain in her eyes. "I'm not going to like you for quite a while, but . . . the silent treatment is over." Jenny looked stunned. Then Buffy slowly turned around and walked back out into the hallway, leaving Jenny sitting silently at her desk.

-----

Buffy, Xander, Willow, Cordelia and Lotion sat around the table in the library. Giles arrived holding a book and said, "I have studied werewolves, and have found some interesting information. The werewolf represents the most primal and primitive in us. So primal it emerges not just on the full moon, but also the nights directly preceding and following it. It is a creature that runs on pure instinct; it lives to feed, and so it kills. It knows no mercy or remorse, or in fact any higher brain functioning."

"In short, you're typical male," Buffy piped up with a smile.

"Hey!" Xander called out offended, while the other three girls looked without any positive emotions at Buffy, who was completely oblivious to having pissed the other girls off.

"Indeed, Buffy, let's not jump to conclusions, shall we?" Giles added to defense of his gender somewhat perturbed.

"Who jumped? I took a tiny step, and there conclusions were," Buffy added perkily and looked over to Willow's dark look.

"And why would you consider that a bad thing?" Lotion asked Buffy, and then she seemed to be taken by a holy spirit. "Rough, tough, doesn't put up with wining, goes after the girls he wants, conquers them, defeats any man to stand in his way. He takes you hard, no nicey nice 'oh, dear, yes dear', no annoying spineless thingy, no shifting and wonder, and thinking a fifth time over this or that, looks at you, leers at you, no pussyfooting around waiting for you to make a move, no having to hope you took the right thing, were you two forceful for his weak spine, or did you come on too soft and thinks you lack confidence, no, a _/real/_ man comes after you. A _/real/_ man will rip a bear's paws of with his bear hands in order to protect you. You are lucky having real men around, just imagine having to drag his sorry wimpy ass away from the bear before taking it on with your swords, while he just sits there cowardly. No, a man in touch with his instincts, that's the way a man should be."

Everyone looked at her, and Giles started, "Yes, well, that was- . . ."

"She's completely right," Willow butted in.

"WHAT?" Buffy exclaimed in shock, hearing that come from her best female friend. Xander looked surprised at Willow.

"She's right," Willow repeated, nodding, "that's exactly the way a you want a guy to be. Who wants a wimp? You want a guy to take charge, I want to feel strength in his arms around me, confidence and power he just conquered another girl as he kisses you. Oh, yes, no half-hearted and then backing off going on about going too fast this, and I'm not ready thus. Bad enough we do that; guy's do that . . . well, the human race would be extinct in no time, because nobody would get to having sex and procreation."

Buffy was about to say something, when Cordelia said, "Yep, definitely. A man doesn't have the drive for sex, the human race is doomed. The way men are today is the way we want them, we made them, we chose to procreate with those types of men, and here we are today."

"Hey, where's the sisterhood gone?" Buffy pouted with some surprise and annoyance.

"It isn't like girls are any better," Xander observed with a smirk.

"How dare you say that?" Buffy exclaimed angrily at Xander.

The brunet put his hands behind his head and said, "Who dragged us off to Deo's to ogle Ryoga's chest, huh? Twice in fact."

"Well . . . hey . . . that's," Buffy managed before being reduced to sputtering. Giles took his classes off and started cleaning them with a handkerchief.

"He's got you there," Cordelia commented with a grin.

Xander nodded in victory as he added, "And how did we figure out I was bi? Lexa checked out a guy's ass. I'm a girl too, Buffy, girls are just as bad; you've just had better pr the last few decades."

"This is not fair," Buffy said folding her arms across her chest and pouted.

Having long since resorted to pinching the bridge of his nose, Giles interrupted the conversation and said, "That's all fascinating, I'm sure, but I believe we have more pressing matter to attend to; namely a werewolf."

"Bring out the silver bullets, giddy-up," Xander said with a smile.

"No bullets," Giles said resolutely, making everyone look up at him, "a werewolf is only a werewolf for three nights out of the month. During the twenty-eight other days he or she whatever the case may be is just a normal human being, who might not even be aware of what he is. We need to capture it, subdue it, but not kill it."

-----

Later that day Jenny walked gently into the library. Giles looked over at her, and then away. Jenny smiled painfully and walked over to the counter, going to Giles' side. "Rupert," she said softly.

"What can I do for you, Miss Calender?" Giles said with pain in his heart.

Jenny took a few steps closer and said, "Buffy invited me back."

Giles' eyes widened at the announcement, mutter, "Are you quite su-. . .?" He was interrupted by Jenny getting even closer and planting a passionate kiss on his mouth. "Ah, and what makes you think . . . oh, bloody hell," Giles said and then grasped Jenny, pulling her closer and starting a kissing session that made the former kiss look cold. Jenny gave a single surprised mewl before kissing back with everything she had.

They didn't break apart for another five minutes, and then Jenny said breathlessly, "I'm in love with you." She choked on her breath when she realized what she said, and looked up at Giles frightened.

"And I with you," Giles said gently, and Jenny smiled.

-----

The sun had set, and the Scooby Gang minus one gypsy and guitarist stood in front of the woods where the werewolf was last seen by Willow and Xander. They all were carrying nets and chains so they could capture the werewolf. Some of them were getting impatient. Xander was in tight jeans and top closed by buttons. Willow was in her pre-confidence overall jeans, her slayer clothing. Cordelia was in stylish gym clothes, fitting loosely without becoming billowy, still showing off her figure, bought brand new.

"He's late," Lotion commented with her arms folded across her ample chest, making it look even more ample. She wore a traditional Amazon dress, high slits on both sides to allow easy fighting movements.

"Really, late," Buffy added, making them look at Cordelia. She wore a cap and a coverall jeans as well, along with a sweatshirt.

"Yes, quite," Giles spoke casually, in his traditional Watcher suit, but knowing Giles he was even more impatient and annoyed at Oz's tardiness than they were. "We're with six, I suggest we stop waiting."

"Good idea," Xander commented happily.

"Hold on, let me give him a call first," Cordelia said pulling out a cell phone. She quickly dialed Oz and put on her ear. They looked at her with confused eyes. After a bit she hung up annoyed and said, "He's not picking up."

"Let's go then," Willow said and pointed at the woods.

"Yes, I say we do. Me and Buffy, Lotion and Xander and finally you two would be a good split I think," Giles said with a mutter.

"Okay, I'll SMS him he doesn't have to come anymore," Cordelia said, obviously annoyed and a little angry herself. Xander shook his head in sympathy - Oz was going to be chewed out the way he'd never been chewed out before.

"Oz has a cell phone?" Buffy asked confused.

"I bought him one," Cordelia said nodding her head, then a little angrier, "It's supposed to allow us to contact each other all the time - unless he's in the middle of a performance, but he doesn't have one."

Xander bent over toward Giles, and with his hand to the right of his mouth, shielding it from the rest he said softly, "Whipped." Giles nodded stoically like a good Brit, and Xander grinned.

"There, we can go," Cordelia said, obviously having sent the text message with her cell phone.

"Let's move out then," Giles said and turned around, Buffy following suit. They walked off while Cordelia and Willow went diagonally to the left, and Xander and Lotion took right.

-----

Lotion's arms were around Xander's neck, and her tongue was in his mouth. His was in hers in turn, and their kissing was growing more passionate, his hands rubbing her back. "Oh, god, Lotion," Xander muttered pulling free with some difficulty as Lotion pressed her breasts against him, and wrapped her legs around him. "Werewolf hunting, remember?"

"Hmm, I think we can do both," Lotion muttered before planting her lips back on his. He kissed her back with a slight smile, and then resolutely picked her by the waist and put her on the ground away from him.

"Werewolf hunting," he said and started walking.

"Okay, fine," Lotion said with a smile, falling in step. "Kissing later?"

Xander smiled at the Amazon and said with a small bit of guilt toward Willow, "I think we'll do a full on make out session on my couch." Lotion smiled, and Xander pushed the guilt away. Willow knew the deal, agreed to it; until he could make up his mind, he was free to date and kiss the Amazon.

-----

"What does she think I am, a robot?" Willow complained as she walked through the bushes. Cordelia nodded in agreement, as they walked onward looking around for the werewolf. Willow complained, "I love her, I really do. She's my best friend after all, but still . . . last few weeks we've been strained, but when she comes along that's all she can talk about, crying. Now we made up this afternoon, and it's been worse! Boohoo, he doesn't want me anymore, and during that, she goes on and on."

"Absolutely, Willow, you're completely right. We're girls, not cold-hearted bitches without feeling," Cordelia agreed, taking a closer look through a bush shining her flashlight, but then realizing the bit of fur was a squirl, not a werewolf.

"Exactly, a girl, with hormones, and an imagination," Willow moved her head down while looking with her eyes up at Cordelia to emphasize the point, "a very _/active/_ imagination being this intelligent, and all she goes on is, 'I'll never feel it again, boohoo, his body this, and the feel of hot skin there, and the way his erection filled her thus, and smell of his sweat and the feel of his passionate blood rushing thus, and the tongue, that heavenly tongue, and the strength of his hands so gentle . . .' AAAH! I'm about ready to explode! But does Xander relieve me of my tension? Noooo, of course not, that would be nice and something finally going good for Willow Rosenberg. He can fuck her into quivering wreck at a time she should have kept her paws off of him, but me? Not even a fondle, or-or a pet, let alone a lick. 'I don't want repeat the mistakes of the past, Willow. Last time was too soon, and look what came of that.' Ugh. I just want to tie him up apart from his hands, and tell him, 'Trust me, it's the right time, in fact it's over time!'"

"You preach it, Willow," Cordelia agree wholeheartedly.

Willow nodded in irritation, her inflamed body not helping any, "I'll bet he's giving Lotion hand jobs. MEN!"

"Exactly," Cordelia agreed again and started her own rant. "First they butter you up with tales of giving girls multiple orgasms with just their fingers, and then they don't want to give you any. 'I don't want to repeat the mistakes of past, Cordelia. I probably hurt a lot of groupies, Cor. I don't want to be like that anymore.' Fine! Than don't get me all hot and bothered first! Plus, relationship here. We've been together for weeks; this isn't no one night stand."

"Yeah, I bet their doing it on purpose," Willow chimed in, peering around but no werewolf in sight. Wondering why? I didn't think so. She continued, "The groupies I mean, and Buffy in particular. She's just saying all those things to torture me. God, I need Xander . . . or Lexa, either one will do. Just . . ." Willow paused and then whined pathetically, "This is torture. If Buffy starts on how good Xander was one more time, I'm going to rape _/her/_!"

"Not a bad idea, I should find one of Oz's groupies and do her till he finally comes over with the goods," Cordelia agreed with Willow's sentiment.

The two girls looked at each other, and then both shuddered. "I can't believe I'm starting to like _/you/_," Willow muttered, thinking of all the times Cordelia sliced her self-esteem to ribbons tossed the remains over to Cordettes for them to play with, before dancing on the remains.

"Yeah, same here. Let's just find a werewolf so we can work off some of our excess energy," Cordelia suggestion nauseated at bonding with the school nerd dork girl.

"Yeah, and quick," Willow added and they turned to their left, hoping to have better luck there.

-----

Buffy walked back up to Giles, and said, "You won't believe what I just saw. Brittany Podelle was making out with Owen Stadeal, but he goes with Bara Williams. If she ever fou- . . ." Buffy paused as she saw Giles' incredulous look. "Uh, no sign of the Werewolf. You?"

"The same," Giles answered calmly. "I'm thinking we should ask if anyone saw anything."

"Giles, nobody saw anything," Buffy said pointedly, looking over to her left to a car with steamed windows and vague motions behind them of two people kissing.

"Ah, yes, of course, I meant the others," Giles answered again.

Buffy looked up at him, and pointed out, "If they saw a werewolf, they'd either have already bagged it and come find us, or screaming where it's fleeing for us to intercept it."

Giles nodded a little embarrassed, "Yes-yes, of course. I guess we continue looking."

Buffy nodded and then turned around to go to a place where she hadn't looked yet. Passing some cars she entered no man's land and looked left and right carefully. She should have looked down instead, now she felt something odd under her feat. Looking down too late she was suddenly yanked up, and Buffy gave out a scream with surprise and a little fright. A moment later she was hanging some two meters above the ground in a net. "Ah, what the?" Buffy exclaimed looking around the net as best she could - the net kept her body in an uncomfortable twisted position, and there was hardly any room to move. She jerked and pulled at the net but it didn't budge.

"Gotcha!" Buffy turned her head down as best she could and looked at a man in brown leather pointing a gun at her. "What the . . .?" he muttered.

"Giles! Giles!" Buffy called out.

Giles came out and said, "Hey! What do you think you're . . .whoaw!" Giles raised his arms when he saw the gun pointing at him.

"I'm the one with the gun, so I get to do the interview," the man said coolly.

"Hey," Buffy brought the attention to her. "Before we get all chummy, could somebody get me out of here."

The man rolled his eyes in annoyance and pulled a knife from the inside of his coat. A moment later he cut the rope, and Buffy fell down. "Oof," she muttered and got up.

Now having a better look, the man noticed just how sexy and young Buffy was, and said, "You go, guy."

Buffy abruptly stopped wiping the dirt from her clothes, while Giles jerked his head sharper to the man and asked, "Excuse me?"

"I know one needs to pluck them while they're young, but . . ." the man continued with a smirk.

"You take that back," Giles snarled, while the man raised his arms in innocence.

At the same time Buffy grabbed Giles' arm to keep him from pummeling the rude guy into the hospital, saying gently, "Giles."

"Hey," the guy started with admiring smile, "far be it for me to tell what a man and a girl should be doing in lover's lane . . ."

"It's not like that, gutter brain," Buffy said, placing herself fully in front of Giles restraining him. "I'm Buffy and this is Giles, who are you?"

The guy smirked and made a disbelieving nod. "I'm Kane. So what are you two doing here?"

"Uh," Buffy said, suddenly not so big, wondering if she should tell the truth, or let the guy think she and Giles . . . EW! "We're hunting werewolves," she said steadily, wondering at the guy's reaction while thinking, -Werewolves! Werewolves! Don't think about the guy's icky suggestion! Think werewolves. Don't . . . AAH!-

Buffy expected a lot of reactions from Kane, not the belly laughter. Pouting she answered, "It's funny if you don't believe in werewolves"

"No, I believe in werewolves. It's funny thinking of you catching one," Kane told them with a wide grin. "You look like a librarian, and you . . . well, you're a girl."

"I assure you, Buffy is quite capable," Giles said offended at Kane questioning his Slayer's abilities.

Kane snickered and asked, "Well, little girl, just how many of these monsters did you catch?"

"Uh? As of today?" Buffy asked him with an uncertain look.

Kane pulled on his necklace which was a rope with teeth mounted on them. "Whenever I kill a werewolf, I take one of his teeth. If I kill this one, it'll be an even dozen."

"You kill werewolves?" Buffy asked a little disgusted.

"Yeah, on account that their fur fetches a pretty penny in Sri Lanka and it's so difficult skinning them when they're alive," Kane told her with a grin, obviously proud of his accomplishments.

Giles was shocked, and made it known by demanding, "You kill werewolves for sport?"

"No!" Kane exclaimed his grin widening even more. "I'm in it purely for the money."

Buffy looked at him with disbelief and asked, "And you don't have a problem with the fact that they're human twenty-eight days out of the month?"

Kane leaned toward her a bit as if sharing a secret conspiratorially, and said, "That's why I kill them only the other three." He then gathered up his things, and asked, "I don't suppose you know where boys and girls get together around here, do you?"

"You looking for a party?" Buffy asked, her disbelief growing, while Giles just looked stoically, attempting to keep his more violent impulses in check.

"No, but the werewolf is, it's a sucker for that whole sexual heat thing. And if this little doggy isn't here, it's found another place. I don't suppose you know anything?" Kane spoke gruntingly.

"Nope," Buffy said shaking her head far too innocently.

"Thought so," Kane replied, turned around and left.

Once he was gone, Buffy turned around and pulled Giles along, saying, "Come on, I've got an idea where it might be."

"Uh, what about the others?" Giles asked her a little confused.

Buffy said seriously, "Let them keep looking here. If Mr. Professional overlooked something, they might find it still. The werewolf might double back too."

"Right," Giles answered.

-----

"I still don't get it. Is she that cruel, or that stupid?" Willow complained again as they walked around searching and still hadn't found anything.

"Stupid, definitely stupid," Cordelia commented relaxedly, walking along looking around. Plenty of cars with kissing couples, and a bit more than kissing . . . but no werewolf.

Willow smiled for a moment, then her smile faltered. "Still Lotion."

"Hey, you can just cast a glamour on yourself, go as Lotion to Xander, should make it easy to figure out if he gives Lotion hand jobs," Cordelia said with a sneaky smile.

Willow's eyes widened more and more with excitement at Cordelia's eyes than faltered. "No, wouldn't work. Lotion is much taller than me, and other areas. Glamour just- . . ." Willow abruptly stopped and her eyes widened. "Oh . . . oh! Oh! Cordelia, you're brilliant."

"Of course I am," Cordelia answered automatically. "Wait, why again?"

"This will allow Xander to experience menstruation!" Willow said with a big grin.

"Huh?" Cordelia said in confusion. "What? What's that got to do with anything? And eew, a boy menstruation?"

"Lexa really, and you know, big brain, we make weird connections sometimes," Willow said with a big grin, stopping for a bit.

Cordelia nodded, thinking it over, and then said, "I still don't get it."

"Don't worry, I don't think you're stupid, just a bit challenged," Willow told her with a smirk. Cordelia glared at her, as the two started up again, looking for a werewolf.

-----

The Bronze was open tonight, as it was nearly every night. Thus, there were teens around that were dancing, flirting, drinking, making out - full on human mating rituals every moment. A girl sat on a guy's lap on a couching kissing him gently . . . till he screamed, tossed her off his lap and bolted like a girl.

The girl landed painfully on the floor, exclaiming, "Hey . . . !" She trailed off when her eyes looked up to see a furry snout, and four rows of very sharp teeth. "AAAH!" she screamed and tried to scramble away, grasping the couch to pull herself up.

The werewolf growled and grabbed her by her shirt, pulling her up to bite into her neck and kill her instantly. The girls kept screaming, screaming for help. But all the kids ran in fear. The werewolf opened its mouth wide.

A blonde whirlwind slammed with her right foot into the werewolf, making it fly off to its right, yelping in pain. Buffy grabbed the girl and pulled her behind her toward Giles who dragged her to safety further, while Buffy quipped, "Now, now, bashing over the head and dragging a girl off to your cave is a big no no these days. You wish to get a girl, buy her flowers, chocolates, and learn a vocabulary."

Not surprisingly the werewolf just growled and attacked Buffy by leaping at her. Buffy rolled back, and caught the beast on her feet, kicking it off to her left, where it slammed against the winding stairs going up to the second level and fell to the floor. "Giles," Buffy said reaching out her left hand. Giles quickly tossed a chain to Buffy who grabbed it, and started twirling one end above her head, waiting for the beast to get up. Which it did at that moment, turning around and growling at Buffy. The Slayer swung and the chain slung around the werewolf's neck. Buffy gripped the chain, but the wolf got angry, growling and gripping the chain pulling.

"Ugh," Buffy muttered attempting to hold the wolf without choking it too death. Then she leaped forward with the intent to slam the wolf down and wrap it in chains. Unfortunately for Buffy, the wolf had decided on about the same tactic, and so she dove along as the wolf sailed right over her with a growl. "Damn it," she muttered before the chain whipped tight in her hands and she landed face first into the ground. She still held the chain, but her grip had loosened, and as the wolf yanked again with a howl, the chain slipped, and fell from the werewolf's neck, which then bolted and ran off through an open side door.

Buffy ran toward the door and looked left and right. "Shit," she cursed. "It got away."

"Yes, well, that's quite unfortunate," Giles answered as he reset his glasses. Buffy turned to look at him.

-----

A short while later the police were around, investigating the place where a wild dog attacked teenagers. Buffy and Giles were present as were Willow, Cordelia, Lotion and Xander.

"We didn't find anything," Lotion said softly to the others. "We combed the streets around the Bronze, but nothing."

"Yeah, it seems Mr. Big Bad Wolf had enough for the night after tangling with the Slayer," Willow added in, giving Buffy a proud smile.

Kane appeared in the doorway and walked over to the group. He took in the six of them, holding different types of chains and nets - but no werewolf. "So, you let it get away, I'm not surprised," the werewolf hunter said with a smile.

Buffy gave him a sour look as she answered, "I did not _/let/_ it get away."

"Another bunch of girl wannabe hun- gagh," Kane started. Lotion standing a few centimeters taller than the hunter had reached over, wrapped her right hand lightning fast around Kane's neck and pulled him off the floor.

"I am _/not/_ a girl, I am an Amazon. And so are the other 'girls'," Lotion said to the hunter menacingly.

He nodded, as his head grew red with the need for air. Lotion put him down and folded her arms across her chest while the Scoobs took in Lotion's actions with mixed expressions. Buffy's was amused, happily enjoying one of the rare moments she liked having Lotion around.

Kane felt his neck looking at Lotion with new admiration, and then said, "Well, you should have killed it while you had the chance." He indicated the gun lining the right side of his brown leather duster. "Anyone it eats goes on your head," Kane finished pointing at Buffy and then turned around and walked off.

"I hate that guy," Buffy said slowly.

"He does have a point," Cordelia said and everyone looked at her. "I'm just saying . . ."

"Lethal force, wouldn't have allowed the werewolf to get away," Xander added solemnly, "if it does kill again."

The others looked down thinking. "We mustn't think like that," Giles said with authority. "One human life is not more valuable than the other, and although one can kill in self-defense, we are not responsible for whatever this beast does or does not do. We gave it our best shot. I will say though, or non-lethal techniques are too slow, I think."

"Uh, what do you mean, Giles?" Willow asked, looking as confused as the others.

"I have an idea, you'll see," Giles said, and started to leave, gesturing the others along, and so they did.

-----

A nice grass patch. A bush to keep the grass directly behind it from sight of the road. Behind the bush, in the grass lay Daniel 'Oz' Osbourne - naked. He woke up and looked around. He frowned taking in his naked state on top of the weird place he woke up in. "Huh," he commented to himself.

-----

The next day Oz came walking into the school looking around as if they all looked at him. He soon reached the library and entered, seeing the Scooby Gang was sitting in the library, dejected. "Damn it," Buffy muttered again. "I was so close." Oz looked from the standing Slayer to Willow, next to her Cordelia, and Xander next to that. Opposite him sat Lotion.

"Don't be so hard on yourself, Buff," Xander said calmly, wearing stylish sunglasses. "You can't catch 'em all at the first try."

"Indeed," Giles said as he came from his office, "we gave it a good shot, it attacked no one so you seem to have scared it off for tonight, and I should have much more effective methods of catching this thing arriving before our hunt tonight."

"Hi," Oz greeted softly closing to the table. He looked at Cordelia who looked at him with an expression he couldn't quite place. As if she was hopeful, afraid and tried to pull off being completely disinterested at the same time. "Uh, any news?"

"Hunted werewolf, pig-nosed girl let the killing machine get away," Lotion explained with a minimum of words.

"Like I told the halfwit the other night, I did not _/let/_ it get away!" Buffy exclaimed with righteous indignation.

"Potatoes, potatoes," Lotion said, giving the first word the American pronunciation and the second the British one. Buffy grumbled.

"But, uh, nobody got hurt? Scratched or bitten?" Oz asked coolly but with some concern.

"No, we're all fine, and it doesn't seem the wolf got anything last night either," Willow answered the guitar player, looking at him.

"In the mean time, I think we should focus on attempting to find the wolf in human clothes," Xander said with a serious expression and got up.

"And how do you expect to do that?" Buffy said as she walked over annoyed and sat down on Lotion's side of the table. "Put down a bowl of dog food and go, 'Here, wolfie, wolfie'?"

"No," Xander answered with an annoyed look, and the irritated Slayer just shrugged. "I can get into its head." Oz looked at Xander.

"On account of you being taken over by a hyena once," Willow half asked, half stated. Oz's eyes were a tiny bit bigger, starting to think Xander might be able to pull this off.

"You were possessed by a hyena?" Lotion asked with admiration.

"I thought you said you didn't remember anything from that?" Buffy asked him, much less irritated now, half amused, and half interested.

"Ah, well, yeah, uh, thought it would be easier for you two to deal with what the hyena did if you thought I didn't know what I did," Xander muttered out quickly. Buffy's eyebrows went up, and then smirked half-grateful, half-evilly at him, making him swallow. He quickly closed his eyes to concentrate

Buffy then turned her head, and looked at Willow. "Hey!" she exclaimed. "You already knew!" Xander's eyes opened again at the exclaim, somewhat annoyed he was once again interrupted.

Willow shrugged and said, "Yeah, Xander told me just after he showed us Lexa and him were one of the same. Did the whole confession, guilt trip, crying, bonding night. Was actually quite a great, and fun bonding moment . . ." Willow trailed off and then noticed everyone looking at her. "Well, you know, in a dreary depressive sort of way," she added somewhat embarrassed, but kept smiling.

"Can we finally get on with this?" Cordelia exclaimed with extreme annoyance.

"Yes," Lotion jumped into the conversation, "I am getting impatient, I want to see future husband show his tracking skills."

"Quiet then," Xander added and everyone stopped talking. He closed his eyes, put his hands in front of him, and said, "I'm big, I'm bad, I'm snarling and growling." Xander made snarling and growling sounds as everyone Giles included and Oz the most so looked on transfixed. Xander suddenly snapped his eyes open, and said, "Of course, I got it, it's been standing in front of us this whole time!" Oz's eyes widened significantly now, but stayed silent - any other man would have cracked.

Everyone else looked at him in anticipation, and he said, "It's Larry!" Oz let the breath he hadn't realized he was holding out. "He's got the dog bite, the aggressive tendencies and his excessive back hair, he must be it," Xander explained convinced he was right. The others nodded in agreement. "Well then, I'll go and confront him," Xander said and left the library.

"Yes, in the meantime, Willow, Cordelia, Lotion could you see if anyone else fits the profile?" Giles asked and then walked into his office. Buffy got up and joined him.

Oz still stood there, wondering for a moment if this was all a cruel joke, and Xander was just about coming back to expose him. "Oz," Cordelia called out, and Oz looked up into Cordy's eyes. "I'm going to be doing this till tonight. Would you wanna, uh, help me?"

"Uh, no," Oz said casually, "I've got stuff to do . . . which I'll go do right now. Yeah." He pointed behind him with his thumbs and then turned around walking off.

Cordelia looked dejected, and Willow nudged the queen. "Hey, don't worry, I'm sure it's nothing. He'll be all over you in no time," Willow soothed the cheerleader.

"You're stupid, sitting here pining away for nothing. Did you see me take that kind of behavior? Hell, no, I went after Xander, I pursue him. You're just sitting here like a limp bag of potatoes. I thought you joined us?" Lotion said with annoyance. Willow and Cordelia glared at her, and Lotion shrugged. "Let's just get on with werewolf profiling."

"Okay," Willow said, and then got up. "I'll be right back," she said and quickly walked over to Giles' office. Willow opened the door, and said, "Buffy?"

The Slayer who was doing some kind of balance exercise while Giles read a book, looked up at Willow from her upside down position. "Come on," Willow said excitedly. "Buffy can come with me for a moment, right?" Buffy looked questioningly.

-----

A moment later in the ladies' room after checking it was empty, Willow spilled the beans. "Buffy, remember, the whole menstruation thing, and Xander couldn't do it?" Willow said excitedly.

"Uh, yeah, of course," Buffy said wishing it had succeeded.

"Well, I think I have found a way to allow Xander from doing it after all," Willow said with a big smile.

Buffy's eyes lit up, and muttered, "Payback."

"Uh, I'm in it to help Xander," Willow muttered a bit taken aback.

"I know, Will," Buffy answered with a smile and let her hand fall on Willow's shoulder, "But I'm in it for the revenge." Willow's eyes widened at Buffy's grin.

-----

Men's locker room

Larry was readying to take of his sweaty clothes so he could go into the shower, standing in front of his blue locker in a row of blue lockers. "Well, hello there, Larry, how's it going?" Xander asked with a grin as he came up behind him.

Larry turned around and said pissed off, "Harris."

"I know your secret, Lar," Xander said, still grinning, stepping close to Larry. "You might as well fess up."

"And then what?" Larry said growling, taking a step closer. "You're going to tell it across the school, huh?"

"No, I'm here to help," Xander said disarmingly, not that that helped much.

"What? How do you think you can help? And don't think that just because you're now Mr. Cool Myagi that I'm suddenly scared of you, punk. That one time you got lucky," Larry said angrily, seriously not showing any fear, at least not from Xander's fists.

"You need help, man, before it goes sour, and the first thing you have to do is admit you have a problem," Xander told him, putting his right hand friendly on Larry's shoulder.

"I can't tell!" Larry spoke up, starting to pace. "If I tell they'll run me out of town! No one will want me anymore."

"Listen, I know what you're going through, since I've gone through the same thing, I can help," Xander said seriously, thinking of how to chain or lock Larry up for three days out of the month.

Larry turned around and faced Xander. "How can I do that? I can't tell everyone I'm gay!" Xander's jaw dropped slightly, blinking in surprise. "There, I said it, I'm gay! And it's not bad, it feels good. I'm gay." Larry walked over to the stunned Xander and placed a brotherly arm of himself on Xander's shoulder. "Thanks, man. That actually freed me up so much. Knowing that you're gay too, and went through the same thing, made that so much easier. And it's such a good feeling to come clean with myself."

"Ah, yeah, about that. Bisexual to be precise, me that is," Xander said nervously, surprised at big bad football star Larry, super crude heterosexual was really gay.

Larry nodded, and said, "Your secret is safe with me, Harris. You know, all the times I beat you up before your upgrade, I must have seen something in you that I didn't want to admit about myself."

"Uh, yeah, must have," Xander said weakly, and then Larry turned around and walked toward the showers. Xander turned around himself, and walked toward the exit, "Not exactly secret. Okay, that didn't go as planned."

-----

Oz was in his home, a phone to his ear. "Hi, aunt Maureen. Listen, the reason I called is, is cousin Jordy a werewolf?" Oz listed to the answer and said, "Huh. And how long has that been going on? . . . hmm. Thanks, bye." He hung up the phone, and looked at it pensively for a moment.

-----

Xander walked back into the library, still stunned at the revelation. "Ah, Xander, is Larry the werewolf?"

Xander stopped as he finished taking the few steps to the lower level of the library, and took in the Scooby Gang searching using the computer. Buffy and Lotion were standing behind Cordelia and Willow and they looked up to look at Xander, while Cordelia and Willow bent to the right and left to look past the computer. "It's pretty safe to say he isn't," Xander said slowly.

Buffy nudged Willow, then nudged her again. Finally Willow got up and said, "Uh, Xander." Xander looked suspiciously as Buffy's face split into an evil grin. Willow continued, "I know a way you can be Lexa for a month. A glamour, one tied to an object, a ring or something. Jenny and I still have to make it, but just rubbing it once should make you look like Xander whenever you need to. You'd have to look out a bit with your breasts, but . . ."

Xander's face deflated with every word, while Buffy's grin grew with every word. Giles was busy furiously cleaning his glasses. "WHAT THE HELL?" Cordelia exclaimed in confusion.

Buffy turned to Cordelia and said innocently, "Yep, Xander wanted to explore what's like being a girl remember? And not just toying with us girls? What better way to explore it? He just had to be Xander during a month, so he couldn't do it, but now . . ." Cordelia looked at Buffy in disbelief. The blonde then turned her head and looked with an innocent but smug smile at Xander, who wondered how the hell Buffy could pull that off.

"Willow," Xander whined.

"I was trying to help, you did say you wanted to," Willow said, looking down guiltily, which made her good enough to eat in her short skirt and low-cut blouse - like a seeming innocent girl with dirty, guilty secrets.

"Fine! Whip it up, but you two are going to teach me everything there is to know about going through it, because if you think I'm going in it blind and make a fool of myself, you can forget it," Xander pointed at Willow and Buffy accusingly.

"Sure, of course we will, Xan," Willow said immediately and somehow detected Buffy's pout. She turned around to look at the blonde, and said tersely, "We _/will/_, Xan."

"We'll help, Xander," Buffy said quickly, not liking the death glare Willow sent her way.

"I'll help too," Lotion said proudly. "Future husband is an even greater man than mother gave him credit for, and will be an even greater still." Willow and Buffy gave Lotion a death glare about her continuing to call Xander her future husband, but Lotion was completely oblivious to them, so they gave up with a sigh.

Cordelia abruptly got up, and nodded. "You're right, Lotion," Cordelia said with a determined look, making them all look at her confused. "I'm Cordelia Chase, Queen of Sunnydale. If I want a guy, I can't be sitting around pining like some losers I know. I gotta take charge. So what if he's mister Super Cool, so what he's mysterious hot guy who knows me so well, and helps me out. I'm going to go over there, and demand he spend time with me, or he's going to get his ass dumped." With that Cordelia got up, and walked out of the library, making everyone follow her with their eyes.

"Go Cordelia!" Willow said supportively making a fist in the air. Everyone looked at her now. "What?" she asked.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, Willow," Xander asked his oldest friend with a smile, "but weren't you the president of the I-hate-Cordelia club?"

"Well, people can change, people can grow," Willow defended herself, and Buffy put her arm around her.

"Don't worry, Will, I'll let you grow without awkward questions," Buffy said supportively.

Willow turned her head to Buffy and said annoyed, "I meant Cordelia. I will never be a hateful popular girl, like _/some/_ people I know."

"Hey!" Buffy answered annoyed.

"Right," Xander commented, knowing not to get in between the cat fight about to start, and that also included not being elected the referee. Besides, Buffy and Willow were good friends, they'd not really hurt each other that badly, and they wouldn't take each other's words too seriously, they'd have made up before long - but not before they put him in between the two if he didn't get out of her quickly. "Hey, Lotion, let's go get some food before we go werewolf hunting. Can't do that on an empty stomach."

"Sure, Xander," Lotion said with a grin and walked to him with swaying hips. Xander turned around and offered his arm which she took happily and they walked out the door as Lotion placed a kiss on his cheek.

"This is all your fault," Willow accused Buffy indicating the leaving couple.

"Why?" Buffy returned annoyed.

Giles, not being stupid, fidgeted a bit looking for a good way out. "I'll be . . . in my office, yes," he said and quickly disappeared from the main library area closing the door behind him.

Willow and Buffy looked around suspicious, and then Buffy said, "Why do you think they all left us?"

"Because you're a doody head?" Willow asked her.

"And what does that make you? Doody flirt in a skirt," Buffy returned.

Willow chuckled at Buffy and said, "You helped me pick out this outfit."

"You're the one wearing it," Buffy returned, making Willow glare at her.

-----

Ten minutes later after having had a tasty few sandwiches Xander and Lotion returned to the library, finding Buffy and Willow giggling together behind the computer. Xander grinned, glad he was right in his assessment and noticed Giles was absent. "Where did Giles go?" Xander asked as he and Lotion walked over to join them.

"Oh, he went out a couple of minutes ago, said his order had arrived," Buffy said stopping her giggling with some difficulty.

Xander nodded and walked over to the two best friends, Lotion coming along. They sat down and waited as Buffy and Willow continued their search, but soon gave up. "This isn't working," Willow complained in annoyance. "I don't think the human has a profile anyway, other than having gotten a bite wound recently."

"Yeah," Buffy said and then pouted at Xander, "Doody head." She tossed a piece of eraser at him, which he caught.

"Doody head? Willow, what have you done to Buffy?" Xander asked mock stern.

"Yeah, what did you . . . wait, why should I care?" Lotion said brightly.

Xander turned to look at her, and asked, "Because you want to marry me someday?"

"Right! What did you do to Buffy?" Lotion repeated the question quickly. Buffy and Willow giggled.

"Enough with the chit chat," Giles voice sounded as he entered the library with a small backpack on his back. Xander and Lotion turned around as Buffy and Willow looked up. Giles came in holding three rifles, then tossed one rifle to Xander, the second to Buffy and held onto the third himself. Buffy and Xander caught them easily and examined them with frowns. The rifles weren't ordinary rifles, being quite wide and short. Buffy was about to ask about the no killing thing when Giles pulled his backpack off, and placed a box from it on the counter. He opened it, revealing darts. "There's enough tranquilizers in one dart to down a small elephant, it should be enough for a big werewolf," Giles explained, and loaded his rifle with one of them. "I think it's best I take Lotion, Buffy takes Willow and you Xander go alone."

"Gotcha, G-man," Xander said, getting up. He walked over to the box and took out several darts, and loading the gun with one smoothly. "I need to explain the thing to you, Buff?"

Buffy came over taking a dart from the box and repeated the actions she saw Xander and Giles do. "Now just pull the trigger, right?" Buffy asked brightly as Willow and Lotion joined them.

"Nope," Xander said and reached for the side of her gun, flipping the safety. "Now you pull the trigger," Xander said and flipped the safety back on.

"It's the safety, Buffy," Giles explained casually as Buffy frowned at the switch. "With it on, you can't fire, keeps you from accidentally shooting yourself in your own arse."

"Right," Buffy said with an embarrassed smile.

"All right," Lotion exclaimed, "let's go werewolf hunting."

"Not quite yet," Giles interrupted and pulled three professional walkie talkies from the bag. He handed one to Xander, one to Willow and the last to Lotion. "They should be powerful enough to stay in contact throughout Sunnydale. If you find something, contact the rest of us."

They nodded, agreeing with Giles' leadership decisions. "_/Now/_ can we go catch a werewolf?" Lotion asked impatient.

-----

Oz opened a box and took in the chains. He gave a determined nod and started pulling them out, then the door bell rang. He hesitated for a moment between the door and the chains, then decided on the door. He walked over and opened it, "Cordelia."

"Hi," Cordelia said and walked in right away.

"Cordelia, this is not . . ." Oz started.

But Cordelia talked straight through his words, "Listen, Oz. I'm Cordelia Chase, I do not sit somewhere and pine away for someone." She reached the living room, and walked into it, taking it in while she talked. A couch right in front of her, a low table and more couches and chairs behind it. Left the living room went onward, a higher table there with chairs. There in the left corner was a door and counter showing the white kitchen behind it. She turned to face Oz who had walked after. At the entrance of the living room was a pillar and another counter, for which Cordelia couldn't discern a purpose. "I know you're Mr. Cool and Untouched and everything, but I'm your girlfriend, and I demand a section of your time that does amount to blowing me off and telling me nothing."

"Cordelia, this is not the right time, I'm going through some changes, and . . ." Oz started.

Cordelia interrupted him, "Oh, big deal! And I'm not? What, you got amnesia or something? Killed a human remember? Actively fighting the forces of darkness by chopping their heads off. Quite some changes for the airhead cheerleader captain - scary changes."

Oz took Cordelia by the arm after a step forward and gently pulled her along back toward the door while saying, "This is different, trust me. It's phy- oah!" Oz half doubled over, grabbing his chest.

"Oz?" Cordelia said suddenly, nothing but concern in her voice.

He let go of Cordelia and backed up, trying to put as much distance between him and his girlfriend, grunting, "Oh, no." He bumped against the couch and as he fell over it, he said, "Cordelia, run! Ugghhh!"

"OZ!" Cordelia screamed in fright and walked over quickly, peering over the couch. Her eyes widened in shock as she saw Oz's skin and clothes burst open and fur covering him quickly as he grew in size, as well as a snout and pointy ears on his head, the eyes became that of a predator. "Oh, shit," she muttered, and then Ozwolf jumped to his hind feet, and growled - he seemed hungry and looking at her. "AAH!" Cordelia screamed, backing away in surprise, falling to her ass, and scrambling backward. Ozwolf jumped forward, intending to land on Cordelia, and eat her. "IIIEEE!" Cordelia screeched and kicked her foot up, catching the werewolf in his chin and it stumbled back. Cordelia got up, and ran out into the kitchen, screaming, "HELP! HELP!" The door out the house lead to the forest, and Cordelia ran into it, passing trees as she heard a growling bark behind her. Oz was after her. "Oh, god. HELP!"

-----

Xander walked through the forests and parks of Sunnydale, looking left and right. Suddenly he got a really weird sensation, the sensation of chi suddenly bursting in strength and then changing. "What the . . .?" Xander muttered and looked to the right from where it came. Then his eyebrows raised in revelation, and said, "That must be . . ."

Distant screams assaulted his ears, so distant he couldn't recognize them as Cordelia's, but it did confirm his suspicion. "Oh, yeah," he said as he started running in the direction from where it came. "That's the wolfy all right," he said and pulled out the walkie talkie.

-----

Cordelia ran in fright, Oz close on her heals. She wove left and right through the trees so the beast would have more difficulty finding her. "Oh, my god, oh, my god," Cordelia muttered to herself. Then she blinked, a thought of embarrassment and annoyance. "What am I doing?" she asked herself suddenly. "I may not be a Slayer, but I'm not a weakling, not anymore." She stopped herself from running sliding a bit, and turned around, facing the onrushing wolf. "The bitch is back," Cordelia snarled as she made a fist, unconsciously baring her teeth, and readied to face her wolfed out boyfriend.

Ozwolf suddenly skidded to a halt, and looked with surprise and confusion at the suddenly dangerous looking snack. Since when did a scared little snack suddenly turn around and readied to face you? That didn't make sense, so it leaped with a growl.

Cordelia roared with anger and slammed a right kick in the wolf's chest making it fall back and roll. It rolled itself back up, and looked more wearily at the snack. Cordelia was fed up with the thing. "You sit right this instant," she commanded with an angry rumble in her voice. "I'm your girlfriend, your mate, your god damned bitch in so many ways you can't even count - of course you can't count. You do not eat your mate, you hear that you dumb, overgrown dog! I'm Cordelia Chase, Queen of Sunnydale High, and I do _/NOT/_ tolerate this shit. I'm not a battered victim girlfriend, you got that? You're my bitch now, Oz. Now you stop this crap right now, and heel!"

Ozwolf shrank back a bit at the tirade, the angry tone piercing it's primitive brain, as well as a few basic choice words that it somehow managed to grasp through the human side of him, while at same time not really. Words like 'mate', and 'not', and 'eat'. It sniffed, and what it smelled didn't quite make sense. No longer in the mood to play this game, Ozwolf leaped forward once again.

"Are you deaf?" Cordelia screamed pulling her fist back and throwing a vicious right hook. "I said, **-HEEL-**!" Her fist collided with the werewolf's jaw, and it tumbled back. Cordelia attacked Oz snarling angrily.

-----

Xander was running quickly through the forest, and he was joined by now by the others, but he, Buffy and Lotion, left Giles and Willow quickly behind them.

"Say, aren't we going toward Oz's house?" Lotion said as she ran onward.

Buffy's eyes widened, "Oh, my god! Cordelia!"

The three of them sped up, and reached a small clearing. With difficulty they forced themselves to stop as a smiling Cordelia appeared on the other side, with something growling loudly behind her. Even slightly disheveled, Cordelia looked impeccable.

"Cordelia! Look out!" Xander called out frightened for Cordelia's well being as a really big werewolf stepped out next to her. He and Buffy were already aiming the tranquilizer rifles.

"Quiet, Oz!" Cordelia commanded, freezing Xander's and Buffy's trigger fingers with surprise.

Oz kept growling, and Cordelia growled, "OZ! Sit, boy!" The wolf looked up, and at seeing the angry glare, it quickly sat down, looking subservient up at her, begging with sad eyes for not another beating. Although that wasn't visible; the wounds had already healed on the supernatural beast. Willow and Giles arrived breathing hard, and stayed nailed to floor, as surprised as the other three. Cordelia continued lecturing the Ozwolf, "They're good folk, friends. We do not attack friends, understand, Oz?" Ozwolf nodded his head, and Cordelia then grabbed him by his head, rubbing the fur happily and rubbing her cheek against the top of his head, and said, "That's a good Ozwolfie, yes, you're a good Ozwolfie." The wolf breathed heavily through its mouth, showing his contentment along with its wagging tail.

Xander and Lotion shook their heads to try and see if what they were seeing was real. Giles managed to recover earlier than the rest, resetting his glasses and muttered, "Yes . . . well . . . this is . . . this is . . . unexpected . . . and unprecedented."

Willow was next, throwing her hands in the air in defeat, saying, "Figures! Just figures! That Cordelia is a big enough bitch to tame a werewolf!"

"H-how did you manage that?" Xander muttered gesturing to the wolf in complete disbelief and shock. "It's a werewolf."

As Cordelia continued hugging her boyfriend, she said, "Like Giles said; Oz is just an overgrown dog running on his instincts, I just needed show him who's his alpha female. Isn't that right, Oz? Yueah."

"Indeed," Giles said, attempting to look away at the rather intimate scene.

"This is . . . ugh," Buffy muttered, still not believing it. Lotion folded her arms across her chest, and just glared in annoyance at Cordelia and Oz.

Xander noticed the glint off to his right first. He ran, and jumped. A moment later a shot ran out, while his feet pushed the gun off the course. Kane looked in annoyance at Xander, who albeit having hit the gun that flew from Kane's arms as he sat huddled between bushes, couldn't control his momentum. He tumbled onward falling into the bushes, yelling in annoyance at getting pricked. A moment later there was an angry inhuman growl, and a big bad wolf, with a chest to wide for one, but wide enough for a human collided with Kane's chest. "AAH!" Kane yelled out in pain and slammed into the ground with Oz above him. With a roar the wolf bit down toward Kane's neck.

"OZ STOP!" Cordelia screamed as she ran over to the powerful wolf and the werewolf hunter. The other Scoobies came over as well, while Xander started to extradite himself from the prickly bushes with a grunt.

Oz closed his mouth, rows of sharp teeth falling into each other and visible as he growled dangerously at Kane who looked directly into the yellow predator eyes of the grey wolf. Oz didn't understand now; this was an enemy, one that tried to attack his mate and mistress from where he was sitting, and he still wasn't allowed to kill? "We don't kill humans, Oz!" Cordelia said, squatting down and stroking the werewolf's fur. "Demons, vampires and animals you can rip apart to your hearts' content, but not humans; although tempted to make an exception." Cordelia then started stroking and rubbing Oz, and said, "Good boy, very good. I'm so very proud of you." Oz turned happily to Cordelia and started licking her face. Cordelia giggled and opened her mouth, so Oz's tongue also entered her mouth for a bit. She then planted a kiss on Oz's nose.

"What the fuck?" Kane exclaimed in complete confusion. A werewolf should be a cold-blooded killing machine, and now it was making out with a girl. Kane started pulling himself backward from the scene and then felt pressure on his right shoulder. He looked up and saw a menacing Xander having placed his right foot on his shoulder.

Xander unloaded the hunter's rifle and handed it back to him. Buffy came looking over Cordelia and Oz, hands in her side, and told Kane, "I don't want to see you in my town again, you get me? Or do I make you the wolf's only exception?"

"I know when I'm not wanted," Kane said in disgust, getting up. He dusted off for a moment and took his empty gun back, then complained shaking his head, "Werewolf environmentalists." He turned around and as he started walking away he continued, "First they ban elephants and giraffe's, then lions, now you can't even kill werewolves anymore. What's next? The League for Vampire Rights?" He shook his head one final time before he disappeared out of sight.

Cordelia got up and with a smile stroked Oz's fur. Tentatively Willow did the same, and then smiled when she realized the wolf wasn't going to shred her apart. "Hey, he's kinda nice once you get to know him," Willow said continued to stroke the big animal, whose head came to her chest.

Lotion took in Cordelia's handling of the wolf, and muttered, "This is disturbing."

"Yeah, have to agree with Lotion there a bit," Xander muttered, and Cordelia just shrugged.

"I'm not going to have sex with the wolf-side of him, Xander, unlike some people probably would," Cordelia said, and gave Buffy a look, who turned her head painfully away.

"This uh . . . this is an interesting development," Giles commented, resetting his glasses.

"You think?" Lotion asked him annoyed, folding her arms across her chest.

"Okay," Cordelia said, and gestured for Oz to follow her. "I'm gonna take him home, and give him that raw stake dinner I promised Oz." Oz growled impatiently. "I know you're hungry Ozwolf, just have patience," Cordelia interjected rubbing the beast's head. She then turned to the others and asked, "Could you guys go to his house and bring us some clothes so he can put them on in the morning? Thanks." Then she and Oz were off.

The rest of the Scoobies huddled together and looked at the two go. "Unbelievable," Xander commented a last time. "She thanked us . . . in advance."

-----

The next day Lexa found herself sitting in a stool nervously. Buffy was in a chair next to her, a bag and dustpan and brush were on the table, and Giles was behind the counter preparing for his day as librarian. On the ground sat Jenny and Willow. They were across from each other, sitting within a pentagram made of salt. A pair of candles were standing on each point of the star. In the middle of the pentagram was a ring with a green gemstone, and next to it a full body picture of Xander. The two witches chanted steadily. The picture burst into flame, and was reduced to ashes a moment later.

"There," Jenny said, breaking the chanting. She took the ring and both witches rose to their feet. She walked over and gave the ring to Lexa. "It should work," Jenny said with a smirk, remember how in disbelief she was over what was asked of her and why.

"Heh," Lexa said nervously, and took the ring. Willow got the dustpan and brush, and after extinguishing the candles started to brush up the salt.

Lexa put the ring on, and looked blankly. "Okay, now rub the gem once and you should look like Xander, rub it again and you're Lexa again," Jenny explained to her.

Lexa nodded, and moved her left index finger across the gem once. She looked down and said, "I don't think it's working."

Buffy who had looked quite a bit amazed at the glamour, asked, "What do you mean you don't think it's working?"

"Well, I can still see my breasts," Lexa commented dryly to Buffy with a look of disbelief at her question.

"That's because you look directly at yourself," Jenny explained casually as Willow finished brushing up the salt. She looked and smiled at 'Xander'. Jenny fished something out of her purse, and held up the object which turned out to be a mirror. "You look at yourself and you miss it, you're too close." Lexa looked into the mirror and saw himself staring back at her. She looked down at her female hands and her very female chest, and then back at Xander looking back at her from the mirror.

"Damn," Lexa muttered. "This is odd." She rubbed the ring, and she herself looked at herself again. She tried it again a few times as Willow dumped the salt in a dustbin. "Well, it works," Lexa said.

"Indeed," Giles said, and looking a bit queasy, "you are a greater man than I am, Xander, even though you're female at the moment."

"What's the matter, Giles?" Buffy asked with a smirk. "Stiff upper lip not stiff enough to handle a little menstrual cycle?" Giles tried to come up with an answer as three girls and a woman looked at him expectantly, and then he gave up, shaking his head and disappeared into the office. The four girls laughed.

"Oh, I better go ease his suffering a bit," Jenny said with a smile, and then looked at the three girls. She frowned and said, "I've said it before, but I can't seem to feel as if I've ever said it enough, I'm sorry."

"We know," Lexa spoke, and then turned toward the door. "Come on, girls, time to leave this dreary place." She held out her arms in a bend, and Willow and Buffy hooked their arms in hers.

"Lead on, oh woman among men," Willow joked, and the threesome walked off.

-----

"Hi," Oz greeted a little nervously as Cordelia in a lovely, short dress and wearing sunglasses came up to him.

"Hi," Cordelia greeted back with a smile.

"Listen, I'm not too clear on exactly what happened last night. I didn't hurt you, right?" he asked with obvious concern, a rarity for the stoic guitarist.

"No, after I showed your wolf I was your mate and made that clear, he may still have wanted my body, but not to eat," Cordelia answered him with a grin. They started walking next to each other as Oz's face did an actual double take, and then astounded look. "Ooh, I so love coaxing an expression out of you," Cordelia said with a smile.

"Uh, you, uh, still want to see if you and me . . . 'cause I totally understand if you say we're through," Oz said to her, dreading the answer; still confused over what Cordelia's joking meant.

"Oh, please, don't think you can get away from me that easily buster," Cordelia told him sternly, and he found himself nodding obediently automatically. He frowned slightly, wondering where that came from. Cordelia continued though, "Three nights out of the month you're a cuddly overgrown pooch; three days out of the month, PMS turns me into a monster. I figure if you can put up with a monster, I can put up with a dog." Oz looked at her with raised eyebrows. Cordelia smiled and kissed him deeply.

Behind them stood three girls that had listened in, two of them had to strain more than the other. They looked on with awe. "Did I just hear her claim that _/only/_ three days out of the month PMS _/turns/_ her into a monster?" Buffy said with disbelief, pausing for a few moments, ". . . 'cause I was pretty much under the impression she's a monster every single day."

Willow nodded, and added, "And look at her face when she said it. Completely straight, as if discussing the weather."

"Yep," Lexa agreed slowly, still in awe, "if we ever need someone to bullshit someone, we know who to ask." The three of them nodded. Then they slowly got their bodies back to work, and walked off.

To Be Continued . . .

Author's notes:

I hope you guys loved it! I tried to put a lot of humor into it.


	26. part 26

----26----

The Scoobs were sitting in the library, the afternoon after the OzWolf caper. "I trust that your transformation back went without problems?" Giles asked of the Wolf as he stood in front of the table. He was still trying to wrap his brain about a guy willing to be a girl for a month in order to test and experience a period. Lexa was sitting relaxedly in a chair. She had her legs crossed, but she wore a skirt short enough if one made a bit of an effort they could see in her crotch. A tight sexy top finished her ensemble, liking not having to wear stuff that could fit both a male and a female him - clothes after all, came with the illusion.

"Everything that needs to be there is there, and any thing that shouldn't be there, isn't," Oz answered steadily, feeling Cordelia's arm snake around his neck and knowing she was smiling.

"You should train with us, Oz," Lexa said, thinking of the night before.

"Why?" was Oz's simple answer.

"I felt you transform," Lexa said, thoughtfully. "Just when the sun finished setting, just after I heard Cordelia's scream, I felt a sudden spike of chi, which continued to grow and then alter somewhat. By the time it was done there was so much I could feel it from a big distance; about the same height as Lotion's, Buffy's, and Ryoga's energy if I concentrate."

"Intriguing," Giles said with a smile.

Lexa nodded and finished her explanation, "It seems your transformation is tied in with your chi; if you learn like us to control it, to use it - well it might help you control your wolf side . . . better. At the moment it looks like only Cordelia's bitchiness is what keeps the wolf in check."

Cordelia looked over at Lexa for a moment, but then seemed to decide otherwise. "Good idea, I'll join," Oz answered.

"Hmm," Giles said, and everyone looked over at him, "this is a nice opportunity for a few questions. Oz, have you noticed any changes or improvements in your human form?"

Oz frowned, thinking it over, and said, "Now that you mention it, I think there have been a few things that have gotten better since Jordy bit me. I think they happened gradually so I didn't notice them, and dismissed them when I did."

"Well, what are they?" Lotion prompted impatiently.

Oz turned around to look at her for a moment, and then casually returned, not hurrying one bit. "I think my smell has improved somewhat," Oz said, taking a sniff, and then turned right. He looked across the table where Willow in a pair of skintight jeans and a white top with a cute print ending just below her breasts sat next to Xander. She had her legs leisurely on the ground, spread lightly. She looked confused for a moment as he looked at her, then blushed furiously, crossing her legs quickly and looking away. Oz casually returned to look forward, and nodding said, "Yes."

Everyone looked at Willow for a moment with a frown, and most decided they didn't want to know what Oz could smell on her for a variety of reasons many fitting multiple options. "Anything else?" Giles prompted.

"I think I'm a little stronger, but not much. Certainly not at their strength, or even Buffy's before her training if I gauge it right from the stories," Oz explained meticulously. "I might be at Cordelia's strength."

"We could test that," Cordelia pointed out, smiling and proud of her new boyfriend.

"Indeed, if you're willing Oz, I could set up a few things to lift and smash and see," Giles said thoughtfully, thinking it over.

"Am," Oz said relaxedly. Giles' eyebrows raised looking at him.

"He says he's willing," Cordelia translated.

Buffy grinned at the whole proceeding and decided to butt in, "Cool. Another fighter on the side of good. The vampires better start shaking in their boots. And Giles, I guess this means you get to wear that nifty ring."

"I suppose," Giles said.

"Are we done? Goody," Cordelia said and got up, the others quickly followed suit.

"Hey, Will," Lexa said as the group left, leaving a befuddled watcher behind, "I've got some money left over, as well as a little extra subsidy seeing as they're getting more and more important for a computer . . ." Willow's ears suddenly picked as she heard the word 'computer' and they went out the door. ". . . and I was wondering if you would help me pick out the right one, with your expertise and all, as well as the internet connection and stuff, and the programs."

Willow now turned, and in the middle of the corridor grabbed Lexa around the waist and pressed herself against her in a tight hug, landing her head on her chest using the breasts as cushions, and thus riding up against her, somehow managing to get out, "You're the bestest best friend and potential girlfriend and boyfriend ever, mmmh."

Lexa smirked in amusement and wrapped her arms around her, and replied, "Well, okay."

"I should kill you for that," Lotion said, looking down at Willow with narrowed eyes standing next to the two. Willow opened her eyes, and hugging Lexa closer stuck out her tongue at Lotion.

Lotion started to growl and then Buffy grabbed the Amazon's arm and pulled her along. "Come on, you'll get your chance, just don't screw it up like I did, and you were about to," Buffy said, and finally got Lotion to go along, thus helping Willow out.

-----

"Three thousand dollars?" Willow said with large, wide eyes, as she and Lexa walked along toward Sunnydale's center where they'd find all the shows and the mall. Lexa just nodded with a big grin. Willow turned her head and looked up at her. "Three thousand dollars, you can- . . . you can- . . . oh my, what a beauty of a computer."

They had reached where the first shops started, and they past the first shop with a sun screen out. A man came out with a bucket full of steaming water, apparently to go clean the windows or something. Willow asked, "Can I have it? You'll get the one I have now."

"No," Lexa answered with a smirk, just as the man tripped over something and the bucket went flying. A large splash of warm water came at Lexa who ducked and jumped to the right in reflex. A moment later the warm water splashed on the ground, having missed her. "That was close; a bit more and I'd have to start at day zero again."

"Yeah," Willow muttered, but quickly returned to more important things. "Come on, Lexa. You're not going to use it for the stuff you need that powerful machine; I do, and I'll use it more often."

"No," Lexa interrupted as they reached the next shop, just as a wave of warm water came splashing from the second floor. The only reason she had the time to jump forward, was because she rolled her eyes.

Willow was not so fortunate and was half wet. "Ugh," she muttered, throwing her left arm that was soaked through. Lexa giggled, and Willow threw her a glare in response.

Lexa slowly put her laughter back under control, and said, "I'm gonna need an umbrella." Lexa grabbed Willow and pushed her onward, the two walking next to each other again, this time Lexa was on the right side. She said, "Come on, Willow, don't be grumpy. So you got wet, big deal."

"Unsatisfied deal, wish there was a big one," Willow muttered softly answering the double entendre.

"What did you say?" Lexa asked her best friend since kindergarten.

Willow blushed a bit, saying, "Nothing."

"Well, stop being grumpy, remember the computer," Lexa said with a large smile as the two of them walked onward past more shops; vegetable and fruit shops, a super market, but no computer shop yet.

Willow's eyes lit up like a lighthouse instantly again, the water forgotten. "Ooh," Willow gave out, almost orgasmic - the fact that she was frustrated to be stuck with only one pair of hands in that area didn't help one little bit. "The computer, three thousand dollars, I'll get you such an amazing one. And you're a bad friend for not taking mine and give this one to me. Aren't we supposed to be best friends?"

"You won't be if you keep that up. If you want a 3,000 dollar computer, work for it, I work for a good chunk of my money," Lexa told her strongly with slight smirk.

Willow slumped a bit as they walked onward, and she said pouting, "Go fill racks in a super market, huh? Or get an early morning newspaper route?" Lexa nodded, and then Willow added, "I could always fake an ID and go stripping."

Lexa snapped her head down at Willow who looked much too innocent. She laughed for a few moments. "That's my Willow," Lexa said slinging an arm around the redhead's waist and hugging her close, enjoying the feel of the skin of Willow's bare midriff.

Willow for her part like the feel of fingers on her skin, she wished there was more of that. She looked to her right, and admired the hotness that was her potential boy/girlfriend. Up ahead a woman emptied a bucket of warm water in the gutter. Lexa dipped down and kissed Willow on the lips gently, not caring if anyone might see them - any gay bashers would find themselves bashed. The warm water that was tossed formed small pools as it flowed down to a drain, and then a car splashed through one. The sound made Lexa open her eyes, her tongue still intertwined with Willow's, who gave a low moan. Eyes suddenly wide, Lexa grabbed Willow closer and twisted the both of them out of the way with her not inconsiderable speed. Willow's eyes widened and gave a yelp at the sudden movement, and then she found herself looking down alongside her best friend - at some steamy warm water.

"Okay, are you feeling a distinct sense of wrongness here?" Lexa asked Willow, looking at water bewildered.

Willow nodded, while quoting, "Once is an anomaly, twice is coincidence, thrice is a pattern."

"That's what I'm saying," Lexa said nodding her head, looking around, "Someone out to end my experiment? And who and for gods' sakes why?"

"The curse," Willow blurted suddenly and looked away from the water and up at Lexa who just looked dumbly down at her. Willow looked around and noticed no one was paying attention to them - they'd probably ignore any mention of curses and magic anyway. Willow turned around back to the direction they were going and pulled Lexa along. "The Jusenkyo curse."

"Huh?" Lexa muttered. "But it never happened this often and freakily before?"

Willow nodded and said, "Jenny has been teaching me about curses; how they work, why they work, how to counter act them with magic, thus how to cast them, to find a loophole to break it like the happiness thingy with Angel, and other such things. Before you had no interest in staying any gender, you loved both sides equally, now that you're all about remaining a girl for a month . . ."

"What? Willow, are you saying this stupid thing will now work actively to get warm water on me, even when normally it not only wouldn't happen, but couldn't happen, just because I'm interested in staying a girl?" Lexa asked in shocked surprise.

Willow nodded sadly, looking at Lexa's reaction as she added, "It's a curse."

"And now the other shoe drops," Lexa muttered with wide eyes. "Now I definitely need a damn umbrella, and I'll have it with me at all times."

"Yeah," Willow said and stopped walking, pointing to her left, across the street. Lexa looked and saw the computer store. "Come on, be very careful, we'll get the umbrella afterwards," Willow said with a smile.

They crossed the street quickly and entered the shop. Willow still had the smile on her face, but it grew as they took the place in. The shop was rather large, and had several rows of computers, printers, other peripheral devices. The walls themselves were lined with another row of computers, except one which was reserved for a wall of software. "Heaven," Willow whispered reverently. Lexa looked down amused - her friend had dragged him along to the computer shop on occasion as a packing mule as women were wont to do with males, but her reaction to entering the place never ceased to amaze her.

"Willow Rosenberg, so nice to see you again; without your parents this time," a voice sounded and they turned slightly to the left. A friendly man in jeans and a blouse with squares on it came walking to them. "Always good to see one of my best customers." His eyes were glued to Lexa though, until he tore them away from her and took in Willow's new appearance. "Whoa, very, very good, new wardrobe, new friend, if you weren't my favorite before, you certainly are now," the man spoke with an appreciative smile.

Both girls stances changed slightly, pushing their hips out and sexy smiles crossed their faces. "Mr. Bourdon. This is Lexa, Xander's cousin," Willow introduced the two.

"How do you do, sir?" Lexa said, offering her arm with a bright smile, and bending over a bit to reach out and offer up her cleavage.

"Very bad, I know you two are about to lighten my wallet significantly, and there's nothing I can do about it," he answered slowly and a little defeated. "Any idea what you want?"

"For that, I have her," Lexa said, and turned to Willow, who suddenly gained a bright grin that split her face in half.

"Pentium II 266 Megahertz, at least 64 megs of SD RAM, preferably 128, a good graphics card, and if you wanna play games, Lexa, a 3D card is a must, Voodoo 2, a 56K modem, a good printer. . ." Willow spoke rabidly, eyes shining, wished it was for her, but Lexa would let her play with it no doubt.

"Breathe, Willow," Lexa said, half-concerned, half-joking.

Willow blushed lightly, and finished, "She also needs an internet subscription, and a few programs, she's in school so an office is a must, an anti-virus program of course. There's still some wiggle room and decision making with a few of the components, obviously."

"Not to mention haggling, undoubtedly. I'm doomed," Bourdon muttered and beckoned them to follow him. Two smiling, super sexy, barely dressed girls following him - he thanked god his wife liked sex, 'cause tonight she wouldn't know what hit her.

-----

"2600 dollars," Lexa said as the two of them stood back outside the shop half an hour later. Willow had a satisfied smile on her face as if she just came out of a series of orgasms during a marathon sex session. "400 left, you certain we got everything?" she asked with an uncertain tone and expression.

Willow looked up at Lexa, the smile now turning into one of the cat that ate the canary, and she said, "Oh, trust me, Lexa, we got everything alright. And you and I make one hell of a team; I shop somewhere with a male salesman, I'm taking you along. We were good, he never stood a chance, and he knew it from the start. Did you see him flush, and uh . . . down there? I can hardly believe you did _/that/_ - that thing with your . . . uh . . . everything really."

Lexa just smirked, and said, "We do make a good team, don't we?"

Willow nodded her head enthusiastically as they waved past a guy, who looked back when they were past, and said, "Oh, yeah."

"Okay then, computer bought, it's time for the umbrella, gotta find a stylish, sexy umbrella," Lexa said with a grin walking onward easily. Willow had to exert herself a bit to keep up with her taller and more energetic friend, but managed quite well.

The two reached a corner and they prepared to round it when a guy came walking backward from there, while looking around confused. "Hey! Look out!" Lexa called, as she and Willow bumped into him and grabbed ahold to keep all of them from falling over.

"Oh, uh, sorry," the guy said turned around.

"Ryoga? What are you doing here?" Willow asked surprised, taking the time to take in Ryoga's amazing physique, even if he was dressed - his green pants and low-cut yellow shirt were tight enough and showed enough to appreciate the view though. The yellow, black-spotted kerchief wrapped around his head, gave him the feel of a rugged, Rambo protectorate feel which made girls' heart beat faster. Lexa herself took in the specimen of manhood swiftly as well. "Aren't you supposed to be working at Deo's now?"

"Yes, but I can't find it, I'm lost!" Ryoga exclaimed with large wide eyes.

Immediately Willow's maternal instincts kicked in and her surprise and light annoyance ebbed away. "Oh! It's that way," Willow pointed to the right, crossing the street they had just been walking along. "You take the third right, and then it's the second small alley to the left."

"Thank you, kind girl!" Ryoga exclaimed with happiness, and promptly turned to where he came from and started walking in that direction. Lexa's and Willow's eyes widened. Ranma's letter had told Lexa about Ryoga's horrendous sense of direction, but it was still stunning to see in reality.

Willow didn't have the same knowledge though, and quickly reached boiling point. "Ryoga!" she spat out red with anger speeding after him. She grabbed him by the arm and turned him around, saying, "You little bastard! That was not funny. If you don't need directions, don't ask! Don't ask for them and then go the OPPOSITE WAY!"

Ryoga looked puzzled at Willow and Lexa reached them, hands set leisurely in her sides. "Will, calm down, he's not messing with you, he's genuinely got that bad a sense of direction," Lexa said in a calming tone. "Ranma wrote me he actually once failed to arrive at a field of battle on time - a grass field which was directly behind Ryoga's house."

Willow's eyes were wide trying to wrap her mind around it, and then said, "Oh, sorry. I didn't know." Ryoga just looked annoyed - excepting the apology would acknowledge his deficiency, and getting mad would make him petty and an even bigger fool.

"Ryoga, we're going to buy me an umbrella and then we can walk you to the restaurant, you're welcome to join us," Lexa offered with a smile, her hands now casually in the pocket of her short black feminine jacket.

Ryoga thought it over for a bit, annoyed, and then said not quite nicely, "Very well, I will come with you."

"Great," Willow answered just a bit sourly her quality time with Xander/Lexa was being intruded upon, but quickly took Ryoga by the arm and pulled him along for fear the eternal lost boy would find it in him to go in the opposite direction as they were going.

"So, Ryoga . . . have you gotten stronger since you came here last?" Lexa asked with a twinkle in her eyes as the three of them walked toward a story where they had umbrellas. Willow rolled her eyes, and smiled at her best friend's new found enthusiasm - if not obsession - for arts of asskicking.

Ryoga looked at the girl and took her in for a moment, as Willow kept half-dragging him along. Finally he answered, "Yes, I have."

"Cool, me too," Lexa answered smiling, gaining a little spring in her step, "training alongside an Amazon and a Slayer is quite helpful."

"They're girls," Ryoga answered him with a face of disgust.

"And?" Lexa asked confused.

Willow grimaced, and quickly said, "We're here." Thus she cut off that line of conversation before it could escalate - Willow had quite a few quick scenarios of fighting and damage, she included in the fighting, and she had no interest in any of them coming to pass. The three of them turned to enter the shop and a car drove through a splash of water.

"IEEH!" Lexa exclaimed, getting splashed by the water. She peeked open her eyes and looked down, noticing the swell of her breasts. Some oinking made her look down, and as luck would have it, it was Ryoga's curse this time. The cute little piglet struggled from the neck of his clothes, and then stood there. It squinted in anger, and made several small up and down jumps oinking angrily.

"He's just so cute," Willow said with a smile preparing to squat down. She yelped as a suddenly irritated Lexa dragged her into the shop.

"Stay here, Ryoga, we'll get you some warm water," Lexa said annoyed, making the Ryoga piglet attempt a growl. "Right after we get me an umbrella," Lexa added, making the piglet widen his eyes and then squint back into anger, then jumped up and down squeaking enraged, but the door to the shop was already closed. Ryoga gave a last insufferable growl and then settled down to defend his clothes.

Inside Lexa and Willow looked around the leather and other wear store. They walked along a rack of leather pants toward some umbrellas in the back. To their left was another rack with leather skirts. "Ooh!" Lexa exclaimed stopping Willow putting a hand in front of her and pointing at the pants. Her face broke into a grin, and said, "We gotta try one on, Will, we just gotta."

As Lexa started to look around her, Willow answered thoughtfully, "I don't know, leather isn't exactly my thing."

"You ever tried one on?" Lexa asked with a grin. Willow shook her head. "Well, how do you know if you haven't tried it?"

Willow looked at her, and then back at one in her size, and took it out, as Lexa turned around to salivate over the skirts. Willow checked out the prices and her eyes almost fell out of her sockets, "Oh, can't afford that."

"I can," Lexa replied with a huge grin, turning back around, having picked out a skirt. "Thanks to our cleavage teamwork and your keen knowledge of computers." Willow looked at her with a wry smile. Lexa elbowed her while finished, "Doesn't mean you can't try it on, Wills, then you'll know when you do have the money."

"After I'm hired to for a part time job, huh?" Willow muttered a bit dejected.

"Or a vacation job, with your computer skills . . ." Lexa trailed off, getting a pair of pants for herself, and then hooked her right free hand into Willow's arm, turning and pulling her along. "Let's do some fitting."

-----

The piglet Ryoga paced around a bit, and paced again. Having managed to scare off a few people as they tried to investigate the clothes and the piglet, or came down to stroke him. Usually a snarl and a good powerful bump to the lower leg was enough. What the hell was Xander taking so long with the warm water? Finally fed up, he went to check. He jumped up the three steps and with a solid bump of his immense strength forced open the door and walked in; the owner behind the counter didn't notice, looking too high but seeing no human.

Ryoga stepped inside and looked forward, seeing Lexa and Willow in leather pants laughing. "You look great in them, Willow," Lexa said, nudging her and giving her a leer.

Willow grinned, "Yeah, who'd have thought it? I thought I'd be too thin for leather." She turned to look at Lexa and returned the leer, while telling her, "And you look hot in them too, Xan. Much better than the skirt."

"Yeah, I like the pants too," Lexa said, while at the entrance Ryoga's eyes twitched and rage started to grow. Umbrella and water! Umbrella and water he said! Now he was trying on clothes like some stupid girl and here he was stuck in his piglet form! Ryoga jumped, and screech in rage, moving his forelegs like a bull. He snorted, audibly blowing air out his nose and then charged screeching out his rage, intent on slamming into the bastard and breaking some ribs. Reaching the right place, he jumped, shooting forward at Lexa like a missile. Lexa turned to regard the commotion, and rapidly reached out with his hand, grabbing Ryoga by his neck skin. The piglet shrieked in impotent rage, while Willow looked with wide eyes at the animal. It shrieked more, kicking its legs in an attempt to hit anything or find leverage. "Now, now," Lexa said annoyed and walked back to the entrance, "don't you have any patience?" Judging by Ryoga's continued shrieking and screeching, he didn't. "We'll get you already, just wait outside, you impatient pig." Lexa opened the door, while the owner looked stunned at the event and Lexa's talking. Lexa put Ryoga down and closed the door solidly.

Ryoga had jumped at Lexa the moment his feet sat down on the ground, and so he slammed into the door with Lexa's strength behind it. Ryoga grunted and tumbled backward down the three steps. There he stayed still a bit dazed, and then recovered, sitting down with impotent rage, biding his time to get his revenge.

Back inside Lexa and Willow changed clothes back to their own. Willow went to put her pants and Lexa's skirt back on the racks while Lexa went toward the umbrellas. After a while of looking through the different ones, and Willow rejoining her, Lexa settled on a feminine classically black model, and went to the cash register. "These two," Lexa said with a smile, placing the pants and the umbrella on the counter.

"Very good, ma'am," the woman said, and tallied up the items. "That will be 319,95, ma'am," she said and started putting the pants in a nice protective carry sheet.

Lexa got out her debit card and paid with it. The female owner of the store put the pants in the sheet on the counter, and Lexa asked, "Oh, can we borrow a can with some warm water for a minute, I'll bring the can right back."

Willow nodded and moved up and down on the balls of her feet as the woman looked puzzled. "Okay, sure," the owner said with a frown and went to the back. She returned a little later with a can and spoke, "Here is th-" The woman stumbled over something and a splash of water came Lexa's way. With lightning fast reflexes, the chi-warrioress grabbed her new umbrella and opened it. The water splashed all over the counter and the umbrella. "Oh, I'm very sorry," the owner exclaimed as Willow looked around the umbrella with wide concerned eyes. She sighed in relief as she saw Lexa was still Lexa.

Lexa closed the umbrella and said with a smile, "Hey, that's why I got this one; all dry." The woman nodded embarrassedly and turned back around, only to return once more with a newly filled can of warm water.

"Thank you," Willow said, taking the can, not risking Lexa's curse managed to splash the water over her if she carried it herself.

Willow quickly stepped in front of Lexa so that the curse had no reason to make her trip and splash the water onto Lexa. Thus the two, minus some dollars and gained a pair of leather pants an umbrella and a can of warm water, walked back outside.

Ryoga looked up at the two from his position on the neck of his shirt with an enraged look. Lexa stepped off toward the left as Willow poured the warm water onto the piglet. A moment later a dressed Ryoga launched herself at Lexa and yelled, "You bastard!" A moment later his fist connected with Lexa's surprised face, and the half man half woman was flung backward till she landed with a painful grunt on the pavement. "You left me here as- . . . AAAH!"

"Calm down, Ryoga!" Willow exclaimed in shock as Lexa still sat recovering. Ryoga was seething with blazing eyes down at Lexa, and Willow added, "We're sorry, we'll get the water first next time."

"Man, what a punch," Lexa groaned, feeling her anguished chin. "You've gotten a lot stronger, ugh." Slowly, wobbling a bit Lexa forced herself to her feet.

The two stood opposite each other, with Ryoga seething with blazing eyes. "You two aren't going to kill each other?" Willow asked a bit timidly. "Good," she said and turned back into the shop to give back the can.

Lexa and Ryoga kept looking at each other, and then Lexa grinned, "Hey, you want to train with me regularly? Slayer and Amazon are nice, but a guy that beat me up with one punch would seriously allow me to get better and stronger."

Ryoga blinked and then groaned as Willow came back out the store. "What is it with you and Ranma, Harris?" Ryoga hissed in anger. "Why can you be the biggest sons of bitches one moment, and be all nice the next."

Lexa blinked, and shrugged as Willow looked uncomprehending from one to the other. "I wasn't aware I was being anything bad," Lexa said, and then smirked at Ryoga. "Ouch," she said and grabbed her chin.

Ryoga growled, and then grinned, "I guess I won't mind beating you up regularly."

"Great!" Lexa said enthusiastically, and then frowned. "Wait, that's not exactly- . . ." But Ryoga had already started to walk passed her.

Only to be grabbed by Willow and yanked around, as she said, "This way to the restaurant."

-----

Lexa blocked Ryoga's fist, then he did the same with Lexa's. A moment later an uppercut came out of nowhere, and with groan of pain Lexa was launched in the air and slammed on the mat. "Oof," she muttered, and sat up, dizzily looking around her personal gym. To the left Buffy and Lotion had stopped their fight and looked surprised at the continuous outcome: Xander / Lexa lost. She lost! He seemed pretty much unbeatable to the two. Buffy and Lotion could come close during a sparring they knew, but they also knew she always held back, not wanting to seriously hurt his female friends. If he went truly all out, they had no illusions that he'd defeat the two; probably even if he took them both on at the same time. But there Lexa lay, once more beaten, almost easily. They looked up from their friend and took in Ryoga. The eternal lost boy was wearing a grin, his usual green pants, and a training yellow skirt with only straps, offering his arms and upper chest up for inspection. He had to be seriously, seriously strong if he could just defeat Lexa that easily.

Lexa did some inspecting of her own, and smirking got back up. -God damn, is he hot,- a thought crossed her mind before she realized she was thinking it. She blinked, analyzed the thought for a moment, and then shrugged. It was true, Ryoga was amazingly sexy, especially now with the naked skin and the smell of his sweat.

"All right, let's go again," Lexa said and went to stand in a ready stance, smiling sexily at Ryoga, who seemed oblivious, much to her disappointment. He charged forward, and she pushed his first punch out of the way. Using every bit of speed and strength she could muster she managed to duck beneath his second punch, and then slammed her fist with a yell in his stomach, which she followed up with an uppercut of her own. Ryoga had to take a step back, and then rammed his fist forward, slamming into Lexa's cheek and making her stagger backward multiple steps and slamming against a weight machine. She managed to stay standing and groaned, while Buffy and Lotion looked surprised at Ryoga. "God, damn it," Lexa said righting herself, taking in the boy that was her training partner. "I hit you, you barely even flinched! How did you get that tough a body?"

"Perhaps I tell you one day, when you're really, really good," Ryoga replied with a friendly smile.

"You've been taught the Bakusai Tenketsu!" Lotion exclaimed in awe. "The Breaking Point technique. Who taught you this?"

Ryoga looked annoyed at the Amazon, and Buffy and Lexa just looked at the lost boy and Lotion intrigued. Ryoga snorted that his secret was out, and said, "Cologne."

"That _/witch/_," Lotion hissed angrily. "She great lady Amazon, and worse than my mother."

"Worse than your mother?" Buffy and Lexa exclaimed simultaneously in disbelief. Lotion nodded slowly.

"Man, so what's this Breaking Point technique?" Lexa asked at either Lotion or Ryoga.

"Every object has a weak point, you're taught to identify it, and penetrate it with a single finger shattering it," Ryoga explained folding his hands in front of his chest.

Lotion nodded, "Mostly useless in a fight - is only true for inanimate objects, used for demolition and construction mostly. However, training is done by sending large boulder on rope at trainee, and she must destroy the boulder. She fails, the boulder slams into her. By the time you finally master it, you've been hit so many times by the boulder, you've built up an incredible tolerance for getting hit. It's necessary, for objects shatter with great force, pieces coming at you could kill you if you haven't become touch enough." Lotion took in Ryoga, and added, "Amazons aren't taught that technique until they are at least twenty."

"I am sixteen," Ryoga said smoothly.

"Teach me," Lexa said with a big smile.

Ryoga took in Lexa, and shrugged. "Well, okay. You know, I do have some warm water you know," he said and suggested to Lexa.

"Not necessary, I'm staying a girl for a month," Lexa said with a grin.

"WHAT?" Ryoga screamed out, making three girls wince and grab there ears. He was only just off from shattering glass. "WHY?"

"To experience what's it like to be a girl, experience menstruation," Lexa answered with a smirk.

"AAAAAAAAHHHHH!" Ryoga screamed out, and took a few steps backward. "You cannot be serious! Why in hell? Why by all the gods? What possessed you?"

The three girls seemed somewhat perturbed, and Lexa asked, "Why not?"

Ryoga shivered. Buffy piped up with a grin, "I kinda half blackmailed him into it."

Ryoga turned his head to the right, regarded Buffy and took several steps away from her, hands up to ward her off, while saying and shuddering, "Evil. True evil. Women are evil."

"Yeah, and for the time being, I am one," Lexa pointed out with a smirk. Ryoga had to turn almost all the way around before finding the door, which was just a short way the other way around, and then ran out onto to the balcony, jumped down and ran of, shaking in horror all the way.

Three girls walked onto the balcony and regarded him running away. "Should we tell him that way is the shortest route out of Sunnydale and there's nothing there?" Buffy asked innocently.

"Nah," three girls said as one shaking their head, then giggled together.

"Japanese and their masculine pride and honor," Lexa said, shaking her head, "They seriously need to get out of the dark ages. Be proud to be a man, but don't be afraid to be a woman, they're not useless concubines."

-----

Willow panted as she finished tonguing the amazing brunette. She and Lexa were in front of the latter's apartment building after an amazing date that had Willow still tingling with excitement, bubbling with humor, and purring with a tasty full stomach. More importantly, the date, and the person she had it with, had even more so than before buzzing with sexual need. Flashes of Buffy's incessant descriptions going through her mind, and with Willow's new found confidence in herself she wasn't backing away from her arousal. She wanted it quenched badly, and not with a cold shower.

"Xander, please, please, please," she said hotly, with a low tone, that was a combination of a purr and a growl. Lexa opened her half-closed eyes, forcing herself out of the buzz of that amazing kiss. When they were looking into each other's eyes, Willow whispered, "I'm not ready for intercourse, but I need you badly - you're so hot, sexy, kind, beautiful, Lexa."

"Uh . . . are you certain, Will, I mean . . ." Lexa said squeezing the smaller girl reflexively with both concern and desire.

Willow placed her right index finger on Lexa's lips, and explained quickly, breathing hard, Buffy's grief-stricken, graphic descriptions and the result it had in her. "Xan, if I don't get some bodily skin contact soon, I'm going to explode," Willow finished, large, lustful, pleading eyes peering up at the taller girl.

Lexa thought it over for a moment, and then answered with a smirk, "We've seen the results of an exploding witch, I'll just have to make the sacrifice to relieve some pressure."

Willow's mouth and tongue found Lexa's a moment later, and the two stumbled up the steps to the door.

Some minutes later - longer than usual, since it was difficult unlocking doors while kissing - the two of them found themselves in Lexa's apartment, sinking down on the couch. Lexa's hands disappeared underneath Willow's top, and gently massaged her breasts. "Mmh, oh," Willow muttered into Lexa's mouth as her own hands slipped underneath Lexa's shirt. She broke the kiss a moment as Lexa moaned out at her experimental touching, and she asked, a little bit of her old self returning, "They're not too small?"

Lexa smiled down, and quickly removed the top, taking in Willow's lovely breasts. "They're perfect, Willow," she told her as she dropped the top to the floor.

Willow smiled, returning the favor, and looking hungrily at Lexa's bigger chest said, "So are yours." She moved forward, and quickly started kissing and licking the flesh of the sensitive organs while continuing the caresses. Lexa moaned, and felt Willow gave her nipples a little nip with her teeth, and grunted in appreciation, while squeezing Willow's beautiful breasts herself.

Both of them quickly became impatient though, and their hands wandered down. Lexa's quickly slipped beneath Willow's tight skirt, while Willow's slipped beneath Lexa's skintight leather pants. A moment later they were even beneath their skimpy - an soaked - panties. Their mouths found each other again, kissing passionately as fingers explored two hot, moist vulvas. Both them moaned into each other's mouths, and then they opened their eyes, looking into each other's eyes hungrily. Quickly they stripped themselves of their last garments and attacked each other once more. Fingers thrust inside each other's love caves, while others stroked clitorises. Not long after both exploded in orgasm.

Lexa leaned back in satisfaction and Willow went along, giving a satisfied moan as she laid her head on Lexa's chest, using her breasts as cushions. Their fingers were still gently probing, and Willow muttered, "Oh, it was better than I had thought."

"My sweet Willow," Lexa said breathlessly and kissed her on her hair. "I think I can go another round - just fingers."

Willow looked up, looking amazingly cute with her eyes turned up. She smiled and told Lexa, "You're the best." Then reached up to kiss Lexa again . . .

-----

"Oh, god! Oh, my god! Coming again . . ." Cordelia lost all ability to speak then, quivering and shiver as yet another orgasm crashed over her. How some fingers and a tongue could bring her to such heaven was beyond her, even if she didn't have her ability to think fried by her body's waves of orgasmic pleasure.

Her skirt was hunched up, sitting behind the wheel of her car, and Oz was bent down sideways from the passenger seat so his head and hands were in between her legs. Moans and groans were the only thing she cut utter as her body was amazing wracked by wave after wave of orgasms, this new one faster and even more intense before. Her eyes fluttered upon and closed, her eyes glassy and unfocused with lust.

Finally her body had spent too much energy and despite Oz's still continuing ministrations could dredge up another climax. Cordelia shivered, and sighed as her body relaxed fully. "Oh," she managed somehow, and Oz rose from beneath her skirt.

He licked his lips with a self-satisfied smirk, taking in his girlfriend who was lying slid down with a healthy afterglow bright enough to make the sun pale. She was so beautiful. "Oh, my," Cordelia sighed out, slowly regaining her breath. She forced herself to say, which came out gasping, "You deserve a return favor . . . hope you're willing to wait a few days . . . I should have my energy back by then." She sighed and smiled, staying there limp, feeling as if her limbs were made of Jell-O, doubting her legs could keep her standing right now.

"Sure," Oz said with a smile - not even he could keep that off his face seeing his handy work and the gratitude in Cordelia's eyes. He pressed his lips to hers and kissed gently but passionately.

"Mmh," Cordelia murmured as she tasted an unfamiliar but pleasant taste in his mouth. Her eyes widened as she realized what it was, and watched as Oz broke the kiss, then licked and sucked one of his fingers clean of a glistening substance. He offered another one to Cordelia. After a moment's hesitation she took the offering in her mouth - yep, she had guessed right what the taste in his mouth had been.

"God, you're amazing," Cordelia muttered as she slowly felt strength returning to her body - not much strength, but there was some.

"I try," Oz answered in his usual manner.

Cordelia smiled at him; the guy could be so annoying with that attitude of his, and it made her be in love with him only more. Odd; Xander annoyed her in the same way, and she fell for him too. -So annoying is my type?- she wondered and let out a grumble. "You are so annoying some times," she told him with attempt at giving him a scowl, but her face refused to leave the satisfied expression behind. She gave up and asked, "What did I do to deserve you?"

"Kicked demon ass, and being deeper than a surface glance revealed," Oz answered, and took the last 'dirty' finger in his mouth, sucking it clean.

Cordelia actually managed a momentary scowl this time around, refrained from saying that it was a rhetorical question, and instead answered, "Of course, what else did you expect?"

"I refrain from answering that, on account that it would incriminate me," Oz said, and then gave her a smirk that he couldn't refuse her.

"Right," Cordelia said and righted herself. She then placed her panties straight again, and smoothed out her skirt, pulling it down. She looked over to Oz, and then leaned in to kiss him tiredly, her body still pleasantly aching. Her hand moved down his pants. He sucked in a sharp breath as he felt her hand around his harness. She broke the kiss, and whispered, "Handjob only, baby, really don't have the strength for more."

Oz gave a groan, and muttered, "'s okay."

-----

Willow parried Cordelia's punch, and threw her own at the cheerleader's stomach, which she avoided by turning away. The library was not quiet right now. Giles was busy doing whatever, while Jenny was thoughtfully keeping an eye Willow and Cordelia as they sparred. By far the largest ruckus came from Lexa facing off against Ryoga though.

"I still cannot believe you're doing this," Ryoga snarled as he landed a very powerful punch in Lexa's stomach. Lexa grunted as she staggered back under the onslaught, and parried his next blow, before landing a kick in his stomach.

They were apart for a moment, and Lexa said, "Yeah, well, I cannot believe how bad your sense of direction is, so we're even."

Ryoga growled, and said, "Oh, no we're not. You're less." He charged forward and landed a devastating combo of punches and kicks that sent Lexa skidding across the floor.

She looked up and smiled brightly Ryoga. "I see your point," Lexa said flirtatiously and righted herself, and starting the Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire. Although the eternal lost boy couldn't keep up, he had obviously faced the move enough times he had built up his own speed to parry about one out of every three punches. After Lexa was done with the move, she looked even more appreciatively at Ryoga. The guy was still standing, and didn't seem to be that much worse for wear. She smiled and said, "Nice."

Willow spied to her right where Lexa and Ryoga were parrying with an annoyed frown. This resulted in a punch from Cordelia across her chin and she staggered back. "What's with you?" Cordelia asked, wondering how such an obvious punch could have gotten through Willow's not inconsiderable defenses.

Willow grumbled and got back in a stance, steeling another annoyed look at Lexa and Ryoga. Cordelia quickly looked over where Willow was looking, and just caught Lexa smiling at Ryoga. "Ah," she said with a superior smirk, looking back at Willow, "afraid of little male competition, are we?"

"Cordelia," Willow warned with a deadly scowl.

"Hey, he's hot, Lexa's hot, they're both fighters . . . you shouldn't have tossed Oz in my way," Cordelia teased with a grin.

Willow actually growled, mumbled a spell and suddenly Cordelia found herself pulled toward Willow. "Wha?" she managed as she was lifted off the floor, and a moment later Willow's uppercut smashed in her chin. The cheerleader already in the air by the levitation spell, was flung backward till she crashed painfully on the floor, and then smashed against chairs and the table. Jenny took the even in with a grin.

Willow swayed over, and smiled sexily down at Cordelia who looked up dazedly. "I like training," Willow said with a smile. Cordelia grumbled something unintelligible as she rubbed her painful head.

"That was very good, Willow, self-control even while angry, not a drip too much power used," Jenny commended the redhead witch from her position behind the counter. Willow grinned.

With another crash, Lexa once more landed on the ground.

-----

Darkness prevailed in the room, except for the light given off by the camera projector and the movie screen. They had given up on the movie; and started exploring each other. Female lips were pressed against female lips, while female tongues dueled, and female hands groped. Except nobody would see that, everyone would a hot girl kissing an obviously handsome and strong specimen of manhood. The glamour obscuring Lexa and showing Xander to the world held up very well. If one looked really close they might notice the mouth of the stunning brunette opposite her wasn't lined up quite naturally with his, but it was a dark place and a good movie so no one paid attention.

Lotion deepened the kiss, moaning, then moving her hands up as she felt the other pair of hands cup her breasts. She expected a manly chest, but found a pair of female breasts in her hand. She stopped kissing a bit, even as Lexa's hands reached underneath Lotion's Amazon dress. "Hmm," Lotion said, stopping her hands. Lexa opened her eyes, and Xander's looked questioningly at the Amazon. "Ah," Lotion said, realizing this wasn't working.

"What is it?" Lexa asked her softly, not wanting to bother the other viewers.

Lotion sighed, leant forward, and whispered, "Xander, I'm an Amazon, and we don't exactly have a problem with girl on girl. Heck, plenty of us who prefer a strong partner like me try and enjoy as a . . . well . . . better substitute before we're forced to find a wimpy man for expected procreation, continuation of the tribe - a strong partner is much more fun. But, I'm heterosexual, you're a man, and you're _/not/_ wimpy - you're a _/man/_. You're everything I could possibly wish for . . . I don't want to squander such amazing luck, and such a fantastic man by having my first . . . intimate contact be with a girl after all."

"I understand," Lexa whispered, smiling and looking deeply in her eyes.

"I can wait a few weeks," Lotion whispered again. Lexa lowered her arms. Lotion took them and pushed them forward around her back and then kissed Lexa again. "But I've already kissed you as a man, we can still kiss till then," Lotion whispered, and their kissing continued.

Lexa broke the kiss then and looked Lotion with twinkles in her eyes; which were even visible in the glamour eyes of Xander Harris, and she asked with a smirk, "So you ever kissed another Amazon to try out?"

"No," Lotion answered slightly confused.

"Dang," Lexa whispered again, and quickly checked if he wasn't too loud. His possible fantastic visions of Lotion kissing another buxom Amazon like Shampoo evaporated. Ah, well, could always become a fantasy.

"Why?" Lotion asked.

Lexa grinned and said, "Men like girl on girl."

"Really? And you're a man, a real man," Lotion muttered hotly and once again kissed the other girl deeply.

-----

The movie was over. Lotion and Lexa in Xander disguise walked out of the theater room into the main hall, chatting about the nice movie. After Lotion telling Lexa she wanted to wait with anything more than kissing, they had managed to keep most of their attention on the movie. Now a guy, screwing the cap off of a bottle of water, turned his head to his girlfriend, and stumbled. Water sprayed from his bottle as he attempted to keep his balance. With lightning reflexes Lexa pulled her umbrella up and opened it, twisting it around. The water splashed harmlessly on her umbrella, and she peeked around it. Everyone, including Lotion looked a little surprised, then Lexa put the umbrella back down.

"Come on," Lexa said, hooking his right arm around Lotion's left elbow. A few steps onward, Lexa hissed, "I'm really starting to hate that."

-----

Ryoga yawned and stretched as the sun fell on his face. Defeated he let his hands fall. Last night he'd gotten to his motel really late. It was going to take quite a bit longer this time around to scrounge up the money for his trip home. He hated it. He wanted to get back to Nerima to finally kick Ranma's ass and claim Akane for himself. There was one bright spot though; Xander. He wasn't so bad a guy, and training with him was good - except his ridiculous insistence on being a girl for a month and experiencing . . . _/that/_. Ryoga shivered lying in his bed, completely not understanding.

He sighed and got up out of bed, taking in the dirty, pathetic excuse for a motel room. He got dressed, and as he was about to leave to get to his horrendous job, he noticed an envelop lying in front of the door. Frowning he bent down, and examined it, finding 'Ryoga' written on the front. He raised his eyebrows and opened the envelope. Inside he found a card, which had a big red heard printed on a pink background.

Ryoga's frown deepened and he turned the card around, then read out loud, "'Ryoga, you are amazing, a fantastic mind in fantastic muscles, martial arts not withstanding, with your feathers no longer ruffled, I like you a lot, definitely. Happy Valentine's Day, Anonymous.'" Ryoga stared at the card in confusion for a few moments, and then asked himself, "What's 'Valentine's Day'?"

-----

Lotion opened her locker and looked surprised as the large envelope fell from it. She bent over - making several male students take a close look at her curvaceous ass - and picked it up. 'Lotion,' it read. She opened the envelope, and took in the beautiful romantic picture on the front; showing hearts and two pairs of lips pressing against each other. In golden letters it read, 'Happy Valentine's Day.' Lotion blinked confused and turned it around, reading, 'Amazon among Amazons, my beautiful Lotion, there is more where this came from, to be sure, but try to contain your impatience. I feel bad for not being able to make more of a commitment, to slice the not. Happy Valentine's Day, Xander.'

Lotion blinked twice, and then scratched her head in confusion. "Valentine's Day?" she muttered. She grabbed her books and closed the locker, then thought. Grumbling in annoyance she quickly moved to where she knew Willow had her locker.

Willow looked dreamily as she finished reading her own Valentine's Day card. Buffy was next to her, looking just as happy and holding a card to her heart. "What's Valentine's Day?"

The two looked over and saw Lotion reach them, a confused look on her face. Willow and Buffy blinked, looked at each other and then Willow, "Well, it's just this quaint tradition we have. Nothing to worry about- . . ."

"Don't listen to her, the conniving bitch. I didn't think you had it in you, Willow," Cordelia's voice sounded as she joined the three.

"Hey, I was going to say Xander wouldn't hold it against her, different culture and all," Willow protested, but whether she was lying or not, Buffy couldn't tell.

Cordelia glared and Willow, and continued her explanation, "It's a tradition where lovers, potential lovers, and sometimes friends give each other cards and gifts. If you don't get Xander one, he'll be heartbroken." Lotion looked shocked at the other cheerleader. "Don't worry, you have all day, I'll help you pick something out," Cordelia added smoothly.

"He's a guy, you know, I think he'll get over it," Buffy replied lightly.

Cordelia rolled her eyes, and told her, "_/He/_ is also a girl, in fact, _/he's/_ been _/only/_ girl for the past one and a half weeks." Buffy and Willow's eyes widened in revelation, while Lotion looked still somewhat confused. "Look what I got, Oz," Cordelia said softly with a smile and held up a plastic bag which contained a gift-wrapped box. "Chains; if I have to chain him up for some reason, he'll be chained up stylishly. No boyfriend of mine won't be stylish."

Willow's and Buffy's jaws dropped, making Lotion look even more confused, for once shutting up. Willow blushed lightly. Buffy replied, "You do realize how that sounded, right?"

Cordelia blinked, going over her words, and suddenly her left hand latched out, and slapped Buffy upward across the back of her head. "Ouch!" she exclaimed as Cordelia already talked.

"Not like that, slow for brains, when he's a wolf," Cordelia hissed out in annoyance.

Buffy felt the back of her head in annoyance, and answered, "_/We/_ _/know/_ that, the others don't. You better be very careful when, where, and how hard you say that if you don't want to sound like you're . . . I can't even say it."

"What?" Lotion demanded, making the other three girls look over. "I don't get it. Well? What is it?"

Willow put her hand on her chest and said with a moved face, "She's so innocent." The other three nodded, and Willow asked, "Do we rob her of it?"

"Nah," the other two said, grinning and started walking off.

"What?" Lotion exclaimed, following them. "Come on, tell me what it is!" she demanded - Amazons never whined.

As they walked, Buffy took a look at her card, and read it again, 'For my first love, my grandest love, friends forever, love forever. Happy Valentine's, Xander.' It once again brought a smile to her face, as well as a pang in her heart, like someone stuck a knife in it.

-----

The Bronze

That night

Buffy watched as Xander exchanged a kiss with Willow after exchanging gifts. She smiled sadly, she was both happy and sad. Xander had given Willow a small necklace with pentagram pendant, a red ruby in its middle. Willow had smiled extremely happy at the gift. She in turn had given Xander a CD that he seemed happy with. Around them couples were dancing and kissing as the music played.

After breaking the kiss, Xander moved on to Lotion. He gave her a nice bottle of perfume. She gave him a card, which he seemed to like, and a nicely wrapped gift which turned out to be a computer game for his PC that made him hug her close and give her a kiss.

Across from Buffy sat Cordelia and Oz. Cordelia was wearing the necklace with a big heart as a pendant around her neck, proudly displaying it just above her cleavage. Earlier that evening, Buffy and the others had been present as Cordelia cut into her former friends with a verbal vengeance that had left them, and her new friends stunned. From calling Harmony a slut to saying she could date whoever she wanted, including the much shorter Oz which made them - according to Harmony - look like a sister and his little brother, to saying she and she alone ruled the school and she better not ever bother to think she was anywhere in her league or that she could ever take over. At first glance it seemed like just another Cordelia verbal cut down, but then Buffy had realized Cordelia was different. For a moment she couldn't put a finger on what it was - then it hit her, seemingly impossible, Cordelia seemed much more confident than usual. Also, this rant was a nuclear warhead; a rant aimed to utterly destroy. Cordelia had never done such a job on anyone, not even Willow and other bottom ranking geeks.

Buffy had looked over and seen Xander smile at the event, he probably had known all along what Buffy had just realized. Cordelia had been an insecure girl, who wasn't sure about her own position - knowing her 'friends' were leaches / sheep. With her new training, her new boyfriend, and new friends that were actual friends and acknowledged her for who she was - a really bitchy, annoying, bordering on hating her, but heroic girl who had chosen to fight the darkness, she had found a newfound true confidence; not the mask she had worn all this time. Not that Cordelia was now some sweet nice girl, far from it as the nuking of the former Cordettes testified, but she was with them.

Now Buffy's Slayer hearing picked up Cordelia's comment to Oz, "Am I brilliant or what?"

Finally it was her turn. Buffy's heart beat in her chest as Xander came up to her. She didn't want to see his gift yet, so she pulled out the card she had bought him, and handed it over, saying, "Happy Valentine's, Xan. Wanted to wait with the card till now."

Xander smiled and took the card, and read silently, 'I love you, Xander. As my best friend, and more. I wish so many things, but mostly I wish you all the happiness in the world. Happy, Valentine's.' Xander looked up, and smiled at Buffy, making her blush a little - she knew it was corny.

"I didn't know what to get you," Buffy said quickly, trying to force her embarrassment away. She held up her hand holding a gift, and said, "so I just made a guess, I hope you like it."

Xander opened it, and saw a katana rack, holding a single katana: a small one for opening envelopes. "Thank you," Xander said, hugging her close. Then he pulled out a small gift wrapped box and gave it to Buffy.

Buffy looked at what had to be a jewelry box with wide eyes, and then unwrapped it, tearing the paper away. She opened the box, and looked at a silver bracelet. It was made up of sections of a double helix, as if two ropes had turned to silver. The ends came together, as if two elongated omega signs were wrapped around each other and forming a single solid section with no beginning or end. The connected double helixes were connected together with small square sections of metal. Buffy's eyes were wide at the bracelet. Xander took the bracelet and held it in front of her right hand. Buffy moved her hand in the bracelet, and Xander went to fix it on her wrist, while explaining, "It's an eternity bracelet. Wrapped together, encircled, entwined, as we are. Eternally, without end, forever. I love you, Buffy, and you love me; friends forever."

Buffy's heart swelled with the beautiful gift, feeling the love for this amazing guy grow by the moment. Yet at the same time, her heart crushed down into a deep dark abyss of pain. Because it did indeed symbolize their connection, their friendship, their love, but two sides of the curl were also apart at the same time; the gift symbolized love, friendship, but not _/in/_ love, not romance, while it could mean that too, yet not quite. Exactly like they were, loving, in love, but a single stupid moment stood between them, keeping them apart, possibly forever. A tiny shiver ran through her body, as she remembered again what she had done to give Xander the 'ick'. Sex with that cold, clammy . . . she banished the thought, and looked up. Her eyes were wet with unshed tears, that refused to fall, her inner turmoil between happiness and sadness keeping them trapped, although both could let them fall. Xander engulfed her in a hug, which returned . . . and the illusion fled away. Buffy felt breasts, and a slightly smaller body against her - the girl underneath the glamour that kept her looking like Xander . . . Buffy didn't care, she simply tightened the hug, and held onto her friend, uncaring his, or her as the case may be, gender. She just needed to be hugged. She felt her lips give her a kiss on her forehead, and once again Buffy was assaulted with love and happiness as well as pain that the kiss wasn't on her lips.

A bit later they broke apart, and Cordelia commented, "God, you two are saps."

Buffy turned her head and glared at her. Lexa / Xander grinned at the cheerleader and said, "Not as bad as you two."

Oz rose an eyebrow, and Cordelia said, "In your dreams perhaps."

"No," Willow said with a critical, appraising look, "he's right. You're worse."

"Traitor, I knew I shouldn't have defended you losers," Cordelia said balefully, making Willow grin. Cordelia got up, taking Oz's hand, and said, "Come on, Oz, we don't have to listen to this." She pulled the werewolf onto the dance floor and started to dance.

Lexa grinned and then quickly went over to Lotion and pulled her onto the dance floor. "Come on, Buffy," Willow said, and gestured to her friend.

"Come on, Buffy?" Buffy questioned wryly as she went over to Willow. "Is that how you get people on the dance floor these days? Whatever happened to a polite, 'May I have this dance, Buffy?'"

"Out the door the moment 'Come on' started to work," Willow retorted and pulled her friend onto the dance floor. Buffy grumbled something unintelligible, berating herself for coming over too soon.

-----

The school bell rung, and the students immediately started putting their stuff away. "All right," the teacher called out loud, "everyone who hasn't done so yet don't forget to put your paper on my desk."

The students came forward and started putting their papers where the teacher had indicated. Buffy a little forlorn, held back, watching as Xander in front of her put his paper on the desk, while chatting with Cordelia and Willow; who by all shockers seemed to be somewhere close to being friends. Buffy put her own page on the desk and moved as one of the last toward the door.

"Amy? Did you give me your paper yet?" the teacher asked, and reflexively Buffy looked back.

"Oh, sure, Miss," Amy said having turned around to face the teacher. Buffy watched Amy point to the pile, and she said, "It's right on top." The teacher looked away to the pile of papers, and Buffy saw Amy mumble something and wiggle her right index and middle fingers.

There was a sparkle, and then the teacher said, "Oh, right, of course, right here."

"Goodbye, miss," Amy said, smiling that she know had extra time. After all, the teacher had 'seen' her paper, so if the teacher lost it, it wasn't her fault, and she could finish it in leisure time.

Buffy turned around quickly, before Amy could see she had seen what she saw and left the room. Amy was following in her mother's footsteps? As she walked outside of the class room she wondered what she should do. It wasn't like any teacher was going to believe 'she cheated by using magic - there was never really a paper of hers there' at least not _/actual/_ magic, possibly a magic trick. Besides; there was no paper, Amy still would have to write it, she only got a extension in a bad manner without getting a mark.

Amy turned into the opposite direction of Buffy, while the Slayer turned to follow her friends. She looked Xander - or rather Lexa wearing a glamour of Xander - and suddenly realized something. She could use this to her advantage. Buffy smiled and quickly turned around, running after Amy.

The budding witch went up a few stairs, and Buffy easily caught up, catching her on the corner plateau half-way the next floor. Buffy grabbed Amy and quickly pushed her up against the wall. "Hello, Amy, I couldn't help but notice you making with the magic just now," Buffy whispered dangerously in Amy's ear. "Do you want to end up like your mother?"

"Now, that's not-" Amy tried but Buffy cut her off.

"Uh uh, don't bother with the excuses. I could tell," Buffy threatened with a grin.

Amy smiled back, and said, "They'd never believe you, they'd lock up in an asylum."

Buffy's smile didn't falter, and told, "Oh, I don't know. Giles is a practician of magic, so is Miss Calendar - techno pagan you know. They can't exactly go to the board, but if you abuse your abilities, I'm certain they can come up with a way - isn't there something called, 'binding someone's power'."

Amy's eyes widened with every word coming from the Slayer's mouth, then suddenly narrowed them suspiciously, asking, "So why haven't you yet?"

Buffy looked around, double checking no other students were in earshot, and said, "Well, I'm willing to make a deal. Magic has done nothing but screw with my life; chosen here, curse there. I want magic to work for me for a change."

"Ah," Amy said with a smile.

"Love spell," Buffy said with a grumble. "Can you do one?"

"Yeah, sure, the basics, but that's dangerous stuff, you know," Amy muttered, her eyes shifting left to right to make sure no one was near - even though she already knew that.

"Don't worry," Buffy smiled sweetly, loosening her grip, and then letting go completely. "All pure here, I'm in love with him, he's in love with me, there's just a little 'ick' thing in the way; a reaction to something horribly stupid I did. Spell only needs to remove the 'ick', won't even alter his deeper feelings or anything."

Amy pulled Buffy along as they went further up the stairs, a few chatting students past them. Once they were away, Amy said, "We could do it here after school, but I need something from him, something personal?"

"How personal?" Buffy frowned.

"No biggy, really, just something he owns," Amy answered.

"Not a problem," Buffy said and then sped off.

-----

"Hey, Lexa!" Buffy called, as she quickly walked up to her. She had turned off the glamour, and actually looked like he really was right now. "I forgot my brush, can I lend yours?"

"Oh, sure," Lexa said with Oz, Cordelia and Lotion around her. She pulled her backpack and umbrella forward and opened it, rummaging. Off to her right a boy opened the drinking fountain and gulped some refreshing water down. "Here," Lexa said, holding out the brush. As Buffy took it, the drinking fountain exploded and a large geyser of water splashed onward. Buffy jumped back to avoid it, and widened her eyes as in one smooth motion Lexa pulled out and opened the umbrella, guarding her and their friends from the water. Lexa's expression was one of annoying acceptance. Everyone else wasn't so lucky though, and got soaking wet. Buffy looked with wide-eyed surprise as a few moments later the water fountain died away, probably by someone closing a pipe somewhere. "I'm really starting to hate this curse," Lexa muttered, checking to see if her friends were wet or not. They weren't, they just looked around at all the other wet students with astonishment.

"Well, thanks, Lexa, I'll go in the bathroom to freshen up now. I'll give it back to you in the morning. See you in class in a bit," Buffy said with a smile, and turned then away, before she got wet by one of Xander's cursed water releases.

-----

After school

Buffy sat naked in the middle of a circle, holding black candle that was burning nicely. Amy stood behind a desk, on which were several magical ingredients, most notably a small, glass, chemical reactant beaker in which a mixture was bubbling up. She was slowly circled the brush attached to a small chain above it. Red light circled around, making the mixture inside bubble. The energy came from brush. Amy recited, "Diana, goddess of love and hunt, I plead to thee. Let this hunt be over, as it should be. Remove the blemish on Buffy's otherwise perfect love. Let her beloved fill with their love once more, let him not be bothered no longer - for she has learned her lesson. Let Xander Harris know this truth, let him love once more!"

There was a tiny flash and then the light swirled faster and disappeared. "Now," Amy told Buffy and she quickly blew out the candle.

-----

Buffy made several critical mistakes. The first was that casting a love spell on someone who already loves you can never really be a good thing. But much worse; at the moment, Xander Harris did not exist - and yet he did, but where should be, there was Lexa. The spell looked for a male, and there just wasn't one by the name of Xander Harris around. A third critical mistake, was letting a magic spell clash with a person soaked in different kinds of magic. Luckily the glamour was not active, but another more powerful type of magic was always a active: a curse - a gender bending curse. Sitting at home watching some tv after she was done with her homework and her training, Lexa give a shiver, looked around confused, and then shrugged, continuing to watch tv.

-----

Buffy happily walked into the school, seeing Xander-glamoured Lexa at her locker. She hefted the brush, and walked confidently to her, missing a lot of eyes turning to follow her. "Hey, Xan, here's your brush back," Buffy said with a smile.

"Thanks," he said, turning around. He closed his locker and took his brush back.

"So, how are you today?" Buffy asked with a smile.

"Good," Xander said as he started to walk toward his class. He gave Buffy a look, a silent question if she wanted to join him. She fell in step, optimistic, so far so good.

"Nothing new?" Buffy asked him interested.

"No, I don't think so, apart from the stuff in the paper and morning news, but nothing that important on there," Xander answered, looking at her with a questioning look.

Buffy smiled, and asked, "Can I kiss you?"

Buffy sucked in her breath - this was it. Had the spell worked? "Kiss?" Xander asked uncomfortable. "You mean a friendly on the cheek, you're my friend kiss?"

Buffy's hope crashed and burned in an instant. "Yeah," she answered weakly, and did exactly that, going to her toes as Xander lowered himself.

There was an extremely uncomfortable silence then, and a moment later Xander threw his thumb over his shoulder and said, "Ah, I gotta go."

"Yeah, see you later," Buffy said and then Xander was off. Pain blossomed from her heart, and her face squinted up. She couldn't stop the first tear forming in her eyes.

She almost started to sob, when a voice said, "Forget him, he's a bastard if he can't see the beauty that is Buffy Summers." Buffy looked to her right to confirm it - indeed, it was Cordelia Chase of all people that was cheering her up. How was this possible?

"Yeah, well, seeing my beauty isn't the pro- . . ." Buffy blinked, shocked as Cordelia's hands grabbed her waist.

"You are so beautiful," Cordelia said with dreamy eyes.

"Wha-?" Buffy started, but was interrupted by Cordelia's lips crushing to hers, and the other girl's tongue entering her mouth and starting an erotic massage of her own. Buffy's eyes were wide with complete shock, not comprehending, and unable to bring up her wits to do anything but endure the deeply passionate kiss.

"How _/dare/_ you?" a voice hissed in rage, and Cordelia was yanked off of her. Four girls, Harmony up front, looked enraged at the queen of Sunnydale High, who seemed none too happy at the intrusion. Buffy stayed standing here, still dazed and shocked at the event. Harmony continued, "There aren't many thinks I've ever asked of you, Cordelia! How can you do this to me? You got all the hot guys, and we get the second rate stuff, now I'm in love with an amazing girl for once, and you decide to take her away from us as well?"

That took Buffy out of her daze, although she was still frozen on the spot, only jerking her head to look in disbelief at the bottle blonde. "You always were stupid, Harmony. If you think I'd bother with stealing something away from you. There's nothing to steal, _/I'm/_ in love with Buffy, and she will be mine, and I'd like to see you try to do something about it, you pathetic sheep."

"Oz?" Buffy whimpered, hoping that Cordelia remember her true love.

Instead Harmony hissed, "I'm _/not/_ going to let it happen again, Buffy's _/mine/_."

"No, mine," one of the other girls said.

"All traitors!" Cordelia hissed, as Harmony looked at the other girl betrayed. Next moment the blonde got a fist against her chin and she slumped into unconsciousness. The other three girls jumped Cordelia instantly.

Buffy was yanked by her left arm, and she let herself be pulled away - the fighting girls didn't notice, but Buffy doubted that with Cordelia's training that would last long: just about as short as the fight. She was pulled around a corner, and deposited gently against a wall.

"I thought I'd get you out of there."

"Yeah, thanks, Will," Buffy replied to the redhead that had pulled her along. She bent down, leaning on her knees, almost starting to hyperventilate. What had that been? Could it be- no, had to be the Hellmouth, or a demon, trying to mess with her.

"No thanks necessary, Buffy," Willow replied with a sexy smile, "how could I possibly let anything happen to that beautiful body of yours."

"Yeah, I suppose it would be a cri-" Buffy started, mouth open in shock as she felt Willow's hands around her waist.

"That cute butt of yours, those breasts, that nose, and those oh so kissable lips," Willow purred, pressing herself even closer.

"What?" Buffy squeaked, managing a very good approximation of Willow's nervous squeaks. "Wh-what about Xander?" she asked quickly, feeling Willow's curves press in her own.

"Xander . . . nice, but Buffy, I just focused on him while I worked up the courage to make my move on you," Willow said huskily, and then pressed her lips against Buffy's, repeating Cordelia's actions earlier.

"Mmh, mmh, mmno!" Buffy pushed Willow back gently, holding her at arm's length by Willow's shoulders.

"Buffy, please don't reject me," Willow asked sadly.

"Willow! You don't love me, you love Xander / Lexa. Snap out of it! Please!" Buffy pleaded in horror, looking around as she noticed more and more fellow students turn to face her. The same look in their eyes as Willow's and Cordelia's: love, lust, unholy versions that seemed to be fueled by crimson hell fires that gave Buffy the shivers.

"We're best friends, Buffy, why are you rejecting me?" Willow asked Buffy with a scary pout.

**"-Get away from her!-"**

The order was forceful and loud, and neither Buffy nor Willow could keep from looking over. Jenny Calendar stood there with a cool, dangerous look. "Miss Calendar, please tell me you're not under the spell," Buffy asked desperately.

"Don't worry, Buffy, I'm not," Jenny said coolly all her faculties focused on Willow who turned away from Buffy. The Slayer let out a slight bit of air, not daring to let any more of her relief out for fear the Hellmouth would jinx it.

"Buffy is mine," Willow said angrily, which made Buffy gulp - she did _/not/_ like the tone in her best friend's voice.

"Willow, as your mentor and friend, I will tell you this as gently as possible," Jenny said, partly relaxing, preparing for what she had to do, "you're under a spell, and before you do things you will regret, step away from your friend. I'm well-trained in the arts of magic, Willow, unlike you. You cannot win this," Jenny said as an unmistakable aura of power started to form around her, "You must end this unhealthy fixation on me and Buffy, Willow, before you regret doing what you're going to be doing. Now unlike your jealousy driven love, my love for Buffy is pure, it is real, and I will defend it and her."

Buffy's eyes were open in shock, thinking, -Oh, no, not you too.-

In response to Jenny's power up, Buffy felt her skin begin to crawl as Willow responded in kind. "You will not touch her," Willow hissed at her mentor.

Buffy quickly ducked and ran to her right, before they could refocus on her. She could try to beat her up, but she figured that taking on two magic users who could turn her into whatever would be bad for her health - or at least bad for her hair. "That's right, Buffy. You get out of here so I can take care of this immoral, black magic bitch," Buffy heard Jenny say and sped up.

"Immoral?" Willow said angrily. "You're the one who started it, I'm just defending myself. That makes _/you/_ the immoral one, you slut!"

"That does it! Ignis!" Jenny hissed and a fireball fired from her hands.

"Hydris!" Willow said in response and a ball of water fired from her hands, the two cancelling each other out with a sizzle and vapor. The two started circling each other, then testing the others abilities.

"Oh, my god! Oh, my god!" Buffy muttered speeding up, horrified at knowing two of her friends were fighting each other. Any doubt had left her mind; this could only have been her and Amy's spell somehow. She needed Giles! And so she ran faster, keeping her eyes straight ahead, and zipping past students, missing how more and more eyes turn to regard her. But Slayer enhanced speed enhanced by chi, she was out of sight in the blink of an eye, and nobody could follow her.

-----

Lexa in the guise of Xander sauntered along Sunnydale High, just minding his own business, thinking about why Buffy would push this. A group of jocks and a few more guys, a total of twelve stepped in front of Xander. They all looked tough. Among them were Larry and Jack O'Toole. "Harris," Larry took leadership of the group, looking dangerous.

"Well, hello, Larry, what brings you and your friends here?" Xander asked both confused and suspicious.

"You know very well!" Larry growled out, pointing at him angrily, as Jack pulled out his knife and opened it. Xander didn't answer, just looked forward with raised, expectant eyebrows. "You spurned Buffy's love! She's the most beautiful, amazing girl in . . . like ever, and that hurt her! How can you hurt her? I cannot let that pass, I must defend my beloved!"

The others nodded and growled in agreement. "Uh . . . aren't you gay?" Xander asked utterly confused now.

"Gay?" he asked with a horrified face, "how can any man be or remain gay after seeing the divine beauty of Buffy Summers?"

"Right . . . so now what?" Xander asked still not knowing what was going on.

"Kill him!" Jack O'Toole gleefully ordered, and the guys charged Xander.

Xander first removed Jack and his knife, then exactly thirteen attacks later, a dozen guys lay unconscious on the floor. Xander rubbed his hands together up and down and said with a grin, "Now that was a nice workout."

"Buffy?"

Xander turned around and saw Jonathan standing there happily. "Did they say you know where Buffy was?" he asked with large happy eyes. "Tell me where she is. She's so beautiful I'm in love with her."

Xander looked at him for a moment with wide eyes and then shook his head. With a quick motion his fist slammed into Jonathan's chin and he slumped into unconsciousness. "Trust me, Jonathan," Xander groaned, down at the prone guy, "it's for your own good." Xander then stepped over him, and muttered, "Giles. He should be able to figure out what's going on and how to stop it."

-----

"Giles! Giles! You gotta help me!" Buffy yelled as she burst into the library.

"Of course, Buffy, is something wrong?" Giles asked casually as he walked from behind the counter.

"I've done something bad, _/really/_ bad, and uh . . . well . . ." Buffy said afraid and embarrassment. "It went wrong."

"Now, calm down, Buffy, begin at the beginning, please," Giles told her with a nod from his head.

Buffy took several deep breaths, and said, "You know how Xander and me are kinda stuck, right? He's got the whole ick because of what I did with . . ." Buffy shivered with disgust at her own action as she usually did when mentioning the event, an unwanted memory of the cold and clammy corpse pressing up against. She shook her head to clear it, and continued, "Well, I wanted to remove the ick, so we could move on . . . so I blackmailed Amy into a love spell . . ."

"That is indeed very bad, Buffy, very bad indeed," Giles spoke thoughtfully, but sternly.

"Yeah, well . . . it gets worse. The spell went wrong, now every girl in school is in love with me, and wants me, and not in a healthy kinda way, more like in an insane I'm-going-to-kill-everyone-in-my-way way," Buffy explained with terror on her face, peeking over Giles shoulder hoping they wouldn't barge through the door.

"Well, Buffy, that was very naughty, you are definitely a bad girl," Giles said walking past Buffy with his right hand on his chin to think. "I would almost say to just let you live with the consequences of your actions as punishment, but that we be bad for the others. I think I'll just have to give you a proper British bare-bottomed caning instead." His left hand slapped Buffy's ass hard.

Buffy's jaw dropped and her eyes widened in shock. Then she chuckled, "Giles, trust me, I've already learned my lesson, you do not need to pretend you're affected as well. Really, can we focus on solving the magic problem, now?" She turned to face Giles and looked at the smiling Brit with hopeful eyes, "You're just pretending, right?"

"Buffy," Giles spoke huskily, making a sexy gravely voice come from his throat. He stepped forward and put an arm around Buffy's shoulder, "I know you are afraid to confess to our immortal love - teacher / student, watcher / Slayer, people would disapprove, people would try to stop us, but be brave my beautiful, sexy Slayer. Together, with my brains and your newfound beyond Slayer strength, no one could stop us, we can finally consummate our love. And first that caning, you naughty, bad, little girl."

The look on Buffy's face was of abject terror - in fact it was _/beyond/_ abject terror. It was worse enough that now the only one left who might be able to do something about the magic was just as affected, it was _/much/_ worse that Giles was now in love with her, wanted to have her in so many ways she didn't think she'd _/ever/_ wanted to be had. And his lips were coming down to her. "No, no!" she squeaked out in horror - if Giles - _/Giles/_ - managed to kiss her, she'd die! It was worse enough she'd just been kissed by girl after girl, but this she would never survive!

The sudden, loud, violent opening of the library doors saved Buffy. Or rather the Amazon that came flying in saved Buffy. "She said, 'No,' you curd!" Lotion yelled in anger, slamming into Giles with her right foot. A follow up punch sent the librarian to the floor - unconscious. Lotion turned to face a still shaken Buffy, and she said, "Buffy! I'm sorry I wasn't here sooner. He didn't hurt you, did he, honey?"

Oh, no! This was bad, really bad! With Lotion having mastered the chestnuts herself, and the advantage of surprise gone, Buffy knew Lotion was pretty much just as strong as she was. Everyone else, even Giles, she was more then powerful enough to keep off of her - Lotion was a whole other matter. The Amazon might very well succeed, especially in her out-of-her-mind state to defeat her completely in an all out fight - and somehow she was pretty sure there wasn't much left of the effected's moral compass. This was not good! Not good at all!

"He didn't hurt me," Buffy confirmed, taking a step back.

"Let's go somewhere private, Buffy, then we can do everything we want to," Lotion said with a flurry and took a step forward. "No man, after all, could understand our great Amazon love."

"What if I don't wan to do anything?" Buffy asked at the Amazon with an uncertain look and a meek voice.

"Don't worry," Lotion said with a smile, her brown hair beautifully framing her face, "I'll have you fired up in no time, my little bombshell." Buffy looked decidedly unhappy, and seriously grossed out.

"You stupid Amazon."

Buffy and Lotion turned their heads and watched Amy walk into the library steadily and deliberately. The blonde continued, "Can you not see she's afraid of you? She has no feelings for you. It is me that has her love. Now get away from her, because I will not let you hurt my beautiful Buffy."

This was just getting worse and worse. Her true, final chance! Lotion hissed back, "You dare little girl? I cold snap you in two like a twig, you bottle-blonde witch! Get lost, so me and Buffy can take some time for each other."

"Nobody keeps Buffy and me apart," Amy whispered dangerously, and stretched out her hands. "Goddess Hecate, work thy will, before thee make the unclean thing crawl."

-----

Xander burst into the library doors, and slammed them closed right behind him, turning around immediately. He grabbed a cabinet standing next to the counter and planted it in front of the door to keep it closed. "Giles!" Xander called out haggardly having been knocking out guys and avoiding girls pissed at him, or just plain wanted Buffy through him. He turned around while continuing, "Do you have any idea what the hell is going . . . on?"

Buffy stood frozen and afraid to the spot. Giles lay on the floor. Lotion realized what Amy was doing and rapidly jumped forward. ". . . unclean thing crawl," Amy finished and let herself fall backward to avoid Lotion's lunge. A bright beam of energy shot upward from her hands, hit Lotion and the Amazon screamed as energy danced around her and she shrunk . . . a moment later she was a rat wrapped in her own clothes that fell down to the floor, unceremoniously slamming on the ground. The rat got up half dazed, trying to find a way out of the maze of clothes, only it's shape visible.

"Oh, my god!" Buffy shrieked out in shock. "Xander!" Buffy then quickly ran passed a satisfied Amy and placed herself behind him. "You gotta help me, Xander, you're the only one still normal. Everyone else wants me as their girlfriend, and I don't think they're satisfied with a few kisses. I have no idea what to do!"

Amy had turned around and looked angrily at Xander, who shook his head to clear it. "Will you keep me from my love as well?" Amy growled out angrily, looking at the two.

"No, why would I do that? I'm all for the victory of love," Xander answered friendly, making Buffy widen her eyes in shock, then she felt a reassuring squeeze in her arm. Amy nodded with a smile. "Keep her busy," Xander whispered, and quickly walked over to the Lotion-Rat who only slowly started to regain her balance after slamming into the ground, as well as finding the way out. Xander hoped that meant the rat hadn't inherited Lotion's strength like the Ryoga-Pig inherited Ryoga's strength. Xander quickly picked up the rat as Giles groaned. He kept it wrapped in the clothes, apart from its snout so it could breath, and entangled the beast.

As Xander went over to the counter to get a rope to fasten the rat with so she couldn't get away. At the same time Amy had reached Buffy, and she smiled nervously at the powerful witch. "You're so beautiful," Amy muttered with a smile. "I noticed that so last night, when we did our illicit little naughty things."

"WHAT?" Xander called out shocked as Giles started to rise.

"Spell," Buffy said horrified as she thought what Xander might be thinking.

"Buffy!" Giles cried out turning to face Buffy and Amy who was decidedly too gropy for Buffy's tastes right now. "What is _/she/_ doing there?"

"What does it look like, you old goat?" Amy asked with a sneer and proceeded with kissing Buffy, who swung her arms up and down not knowing what else to do with her horror.

As Giles snarled, and Xander looked from the two women to the librarian and back again in mounting confusion, Buffy pushed Amy off of her and quickly ran over to Xander at the counter. Behind her, both magic users charged up several spells, muttering hatefully against each other, while Buffy pleaded with Xander, "I didn't mean this to happen. It was just to get rid of your ick, it shouldn't have done anything else. You're trying to deal with, to make it go away, this way should just have sped it up a bit . . ." Buffy trailed off and looked behind her at Amy and Giles ready to start a magic duel over her love, and then at the Lotion-Rat, who had regained her full bearings and was screeching in anger at her bonds jerking toward Buffy. Luckily the rope and clothes held for now. Buffy whimpered, tears in her eyes, "This was not supposed to happen? How can it even effect them all anyway, especially girls, I cast it on you."

"Buffy," Xander said disappointed and rubbed the ring, revealing her true form. The hot girl version of him that he had given the name Lexa, told her, "There was no Xander last night, hasn't been here for quite a while, partially because of you! You cast a love spell, on a guy, who is a girl, because of, and thus saturated with, a gender-bending curse! HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MIND?" Buffy jerked back and gave a sob. "Sorry," Lexa said gently, and quickly jumped over the counter and took Buffy into an embrace, "I shouldn't have lost my temper - plenty of opportunity for that after we solve this mess."

"I'm sorry," Buffy said, as Giles' and Amy's gazes had turned away from each other toward the girl having the audacity to hug the love of their lives.

Lexa quickly let go to avert disaster and pushed Buffy next to her. "Have you two heard? This mess is all a love spell," Lexa said hopefully.

"Of course I've heard. I'm not deaf, you bloody wanker," Giles told him angrily.

"I cast it!" Amy said angrily.

"Well, then it isn't real, you gotta find a way to get rid of it, I'm not magic-babe here," Lexa told them, still hopeful.

"Yours and the others are the spell, my love is true. You looked so beautiful in candle light, Buffy. It made me realize my true feelings for you, and I know you feel the same," Amy said with love in her eyes. Buffy squeaked, doing a good imitation of Willow.

"You take that back. A love between a Slayer and her Watcher is true!" Giles proclaimed righteously, puffing out his chest.

-Oh, boy,- Lexa thought, looking over at the horrified and guilt-ridden Buffy. She wasn't going to get any help from the Slayer, that was for sure. It was all up her . . . There was a pounding on the library doors, and multiple voices unintelligibly filtering through. This was getting worse by the second. Suddenly she had an idea.

"You're right!" Lexa said out loud. "The both of you!" Giles and Amy looked at her, and Lexa came over clasping her hands sisterly on their shoulders. "Your love Amy is true, it's not the spell, and the same goes for you, Giles. Buffy is madly, _/truly/_ in love with the both of you."

"What?" three voices told shocked.

Lexa waved Buffy down quickly, and continued, "Yes, it's Buffy's curse, too much love to give to only one person. It's tearing her up inside, truly tragic!" Giles and Amy looked sympathetically to their 'love'. "Same happened with me and Angel, remember, Giles? She just needs time to decide, or if you're willing, share." The two looked at each other as the library door and the cabinet audibly started to strain under the onslaught. "Let's focus on the important thing right now, shall we? The spell, please tell me you can lift it."

"Sure, but I would need the same personal object-" Amy started.

"Your brush!" Buffy quickly exclaimed, and ducked in on herself as she caught Lexa's glare sent her way.

"Than you two work together, and lift the spell!" Lexa said, taking her hands away from Giles and Amy to get out her brush.

"I don't see the point," Giles said looking over to the door, and Amy seemed to agree.

Holding out the brush, Lexa explained, "But don't you two see? You have Buffy's true love; imagine the torture of not having it? Would you do that onto yourselves? Worse, those under the spell - do you hear them? There are many, and they'd hurt Buffy no doubt. And if you lift the spell, all their love is gone, and only your true love remains - _/only/_ you're true love." Lexa gave the both of them a smile, and they smiled back turning to look at the other, both thinking they other's might go as well. "You have to turn Lotion back into a human as well, Amy," Lexa added quickly, taking a look at the door and hoping it'd hold out just more.

"Why! She got what she deserved, she would have hurt my Buffy," Amy spat out poisonously, looking at the rat.

"But that's the spell, don't you see?" Lexa said with a grin and a sisterly smile. "It's not her fault, she doesn't really love Buffy, she just got her mind scrambled and she isn't thinking straight. Remove the love spell, and she won't ever try to go after Buffy ever again."

"The boy may be annoying, but he's right, you know," Giles contemplated thoughtfully, taking in the screeching rat.

"All right," Amy agreed.

Lexa nodded with a triumphant grin, and then held his hand back. Turning to get eye contact with Buffy, she said, "Come on, Buff, we gotta go." Buffy looked surprised, and Lexa repeated more assertively, "Come on."

Buffy went over, and Amy asked suspiciously, "Where are you taking, Buffy?"

"To save her life, _/and/_ get them off your back," Lexa said, pointing at the doors being audibly pounded by a mob, "so you can finish lifting the spells!"

"Good, we will hurry so Buffy and my love can flourish, and I will enjoy administering the bare-bottomed caning for casting this spell," Giles said with a big horny smile.

"I will help," Amy added with a smile. "Buffy was a bad girl blackmailing me into that after all."

Lexa froze, and Buffy shuddered. Lexa slammed her right hand in her forehead, then shook her head, and said, "I so didn't need to have that image burned in my brain."

"You? What do you think of me?" Buffy asked him. Lexa looked at her a moment, and conceded the point with gesture of his head. The brunette walked up to the barrier that was about to break, and grabbed Buffy around her waist. "Get ready," Lexa said determinedly.

"Can't we go out the window?" Buffy asked concerned.

"Nope, they'll enter the library and disturb Giles and Amy, we need to lead them away," Lexa told her, and pushed out her right foot, putting it under the cabinet.

"I can jump as high as you can, you know," Buffy said, looking down at the tightening arm around her waist.

"This isn't about high, Buff," Lexa answered and kicked the cabinet away from the doors. Buffy held her breath as the library doors flung open and a mob of amorous students came stampeding in. Instantly Lexa jumped over the kids, just underneath the top of the doors and landed on the wall, holding Buffy tightly. She pushed off the wall forward and across the crowd in the hall who were looking up at the feat, and more importantly who she was carrying. Once more Lexa landed against the wall and with another push off landed on the floor, just behind the mob that had turned around by now.

Lexa took a look back for a moment, and then pushed Buffy onward, straightening back up. "Go!" she said, and they ran, quickly and easily outpacing the mob. A short run later they exited the school and came to a halt. In front of them was another mob, lead by Willow, Jenny, and Cordelia. The latter was holding an axe, while magic energy crackled between the fingers of the first two.

"We understand now, Buffy," Jenny said with a pained grin.

"Yes, you played us, just like Lexa and Angel, you were just toying with us, making us fight each other," Willow spoke darkly. Lexa looked back quickly to see the other mob come closer steadily. Buffy looked at the with wide eyes, not understanding how she could have screwed up this horribly.

Then Cordelia growled for the finish, "If we can't have your love, nobody will." The mob nodded and made sounds of agreement as they started charging forward.

Lexa grabbed Buffy and jumped, somersaulting backward to land on the school's roof. Buffy blinked and shook her head seeing the mob below scream bloody murder - literally. "Let's go," Lexa said, steering Buffy left and they jumped over to another roof, and went onward. They turned right and jumped again. They made several more jumps in different directions and then they slid quickly down into a garden of a house. Not taking the change someone inside saw Buffy and came to proclaim their eternal love for her, Lexa pulled Buffy along, leaving the garden and then started running down the pavement.

"I'm so sorry, Xander," Buffy said as she ran next to her. "I just wanted to get rid of the ick, nothing more, nothing more."

Lexa shook her head, and said, "Buffy, even if you'd have nicely succeeded it would still have been wrong. You would have torn a piece of me out; even if it's something I was trying to get out - working on it, that's just plain horrible to do. What we would have had, wouldn't have been real either, just an illusion. This is something I have to work through, and thus you as well."

"I'm sorry," Buffy said, still running.

They started to cross the street as Lexa said, "You're forgiven, by me at least - when this is over, I'm not so certain about the rest of them."

Buffy looked down, and was surprised when Lexa stopped her. She looked onward why, and she knew instantly. Up ahead, some hundred meters, stood Ryoga. The street on the right side was just pavement and houses, but on the left there were trees planted and strip of grass was present between the pavement and where the fences started around the house's gardens. He spotted them, and came walking over with a smile, which then turned dark. "How big is the chance he just stepped in dog poop?" Buffy asked Lexa.

"When you screw up, Buffy, you don't take half measures, do you?" Lexa grimaced, slowly backing up. "Keep going, get to your house."

"Won't they come looking for me there?" Buffy asked her concerned.

"Yes, eventually, but they seem rather brain dead under the spell's influence, and unlike every house here, there won't be anyone there who's in love with you. Keep the doors locked and you should be able to hold out for a bit. Hide your mother, and be ready to flee out the window," Lexa said quickly as Ryoga reached a closer difference.

"You!" Ryoga exclaimed angrily. "I knew it! A man who stays a girl for a month, shouldn't be trusted! First you make me a pig, and now you keep the love of my life away from me! Prepare to die!"

Lexa groaned, in annoyance. Buffy looked fearfully at her, the silent question clear in her eyes, 'You can't take him, can you?'

Lexa grinned, and asked, "Are you certain there's no way to talk this out?"

With a quick roar Ryoga pointed his massive umbrella at Xander, and growled, "I will kill you! And then I will kill Ranma! No doubt he's told you to keep my love away from me!"

"Go," Lexa said and pushed Buffy off to the right, while jumping back to barely avoid the umbrella coming down. Where it landed, it tore open the asphalt and pieces of it went flying everywhere. "Ah, man," Lexa muttered at the visual reminder at just how deadly the umbrella was. Buffy in the mean time, ran as hard as she could, hoping for the best.

With a new roar Ryoga attacked, stabbing the heavy umbrella forward like it didn't weigh a thing. Lexa avoided it, but the umbrella already came forward for a new strike. She ducked and grabbed Ryoga's wrist. With another roar Ryoga came forward as Lexa came up, and the eternal lost boy smashed his forehead into Lexa's nose. "Ugh!" she yelled, blood spraying from her mouth and nose and staggering back. Ignoring the pain she moved forward, quickly blocking the next downward strike at Ryoga's wrist to keep from getting crushed. She kicked out hard against Ryoga's chin. A moment later Lexa doubled over with a devastating punch to her gut. She groaned in pain, coughing, and then was launched away by another punch to her face.

She slammed face first into the asphalt and rolled up and over a few times. She groaned, feeling her tender stomach. "Fucking bastard," Lexa muttered, forcing herself to her feet and seeing Ryoga advance on her. Then she yelled angrily, "You've been going easy on me during our workouts, Ryoga!"

Ryoga just snarled, Buffy first and foremost in his mind, and to get to her, Lexa had to go. Ryoga slammed his umbrella down, breaking open some more asphalt. He then made a sideways swipe, under which Lexa ducked. "Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire!" Lexa yelled with a grunt, jumping forward to perform the devastatingly fast move. Ryoga grumbled, annoyed with the move, forced on the defensive. Several punches came through, but more importantly Ryoga felt a yank and his umbrella was flying. Lexa pressed her advantage and slammed a shoulder tackle in Ryoga's stomach which made him go, "Oof!" She made an uppercut right after that, and Ryoga flew back, made a backward somersault and landed. Lexa still flew onward and with a yell started a spinning kick. Ryoga grabbed her right foot and yanked her over him, slamming her on the asphalt.

"Urgh," Lexa mutter, feeling pain through her entire body but forcing herself to quickly roll right. Just on time to avoid Ryoga from stomping on her back. With a motion she made a swipe at his legs, but he jumped back, allowing her the time to get back up.

Ryoga looked at Lexa, and then gave an evil grin, that Lexa knew he would only be able to produce under the influence of magic. "RAAR!" he roared charging forward. Lexa's eyes widened in surprise as Ryoga flew at her with a single finger. She jumped back a bit when the finger went straight down, and too her even greater surprise slam into the asphalt.

There was a loud crash, and explosion, and suddenly pellets of asphalt, and even bigger pieces were sent everywhere. Lexa put her hands in front of her, but was still hit all over with fast moving rocks. "Ah, urgh, damn!" she exclaimed, and looked - seeing a hole a meter in diameter where Ryoga had put his finger. She looked in surprise as Ryoga went to do the same thing again, slamming his finger into the asphalt just in front of her. She jumped back once again, but again the explosion was there and asphalt rocks slammed in her. -Lotion was not exaggerating even a little bit, damn it!- she thought as she yelled in pain. She felled laceration on her stomach and breasts, on her arms and legs.

She had to do something, she realized even as she jumped back to avoid Ryoga's third such attack, this one on the pavement - the tile exploded just as well as the asphalt. "I will kill you," Ryoga hissed at Lexa and prepared for a fourth time. Lexa charged forward, intent on not letting him use that again, which is exactly what Ryoga wanted her to do. He suddenly accelerated forward and slammed his knee in Lexa's stomach.

"OOogh!" the girl exclaimed with the pain, her wind knocked out of her lungs, not having been able to release it and tighten her muscles on time. A second knee followed, and then a punch, making Lexa moan out more, although these were a slightly less bad than the first, having been able to tighten her muscles in the mean time. Ryoga followed up with a cross to the kneeling girl's chin, then an elbow pulled back to upper right side of her face. Lexa screamed in pain as Ryoga finished it with an uppercut, some more blood flying from her mouth as she was launched into the air and landed painfully on the grass, but still hard ground.

"Urgh," she gurgled, about ready to give up - everything hurt, her ribs, her stomach, her face, even her breasts and legs. She could barely move, and felt darkness encroaching upon her. -What about Buffy?- That single thought, as well as the horrifying images of what the immensely strong magic-love-crazed Ryoga could do to her, brought her back from the darkness very quickly. A cold anger and with it an adrenaline surge burned through her body.

Ryoga appeared towering above her, and he grunted, "Still awake, huh?" He raised his foot to finish it.

Lexa looked left and right, her aching body protesting the simple movement. To her left she saw her possible salvation: Ryoga's immensely heavy umbrella. She sat up, pushing Ryoga's foot away, and attacked his stomach while she flew to her feet. "Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire!" she screamed with all her might, throwing the fastest yet, every single one of the punches slammed in Ryoga's gut. For good measure she added an uppercut to sent him flying back, then flipped to her left, picking up the umbrella with a little strain.

Not too surprisingly, the Chestnuts didn't have much effect on Ryoga, who had gotten so much stronger than her. "You will pay!" Ryoga hissed angrily. "I will kill you, and then I will claim Buffy for myself!"

-Magic people, brain dead people,- Lexa repeated what she told Buffy to herself, and then swung the umbrella from left to right with all her might, groaning in pain as her body protested the move.

Ryoga moved to block, but not even he could stop the mass of his own umbrella accelerated by Lexa's might. It slammed against his arm and then against his face, smashing the arm in it as well. "Argh!" he called out in pain as he was sent flying backward while screwing around his own axis. He slammed on the asphalt, just next to first hole he created, and then slowly, but steadily started to get up.

"Fuck!" Lexa called moving over quickly. "Stay down!" she yelled as slammed the umbrella on Ryoga's back with an over-head, two-handed swing.

"Aargh!" Ryoga screamed as he was sent back to the asphalt. Incredibly he started to get up again.

"Ryoga, just stay down!" Lexa cried, repeating the procedure, but not wanting to seriously hurt the guy. The umbrella hit solidly, and then Ryoga finally slumped into unconsciousness.

Lexa stayed on guard for a few moments, till she was certain he was really out, and tossed the umbrella off to her right. "Finally!" she groaned and slumped down herself, breathing hard, and bleeding almost just as hard. She let herself fall on her back, and groaned in pain and relief. "Ow," she muttered, and then lifted her head. She pulled up her ruined top, and looked at blue and purples stains everywhere. She moved her hands across a few ribs, and hissed at the pain. "Shit, he might even have broken them," she whispered, thinking a trip to the infirmary might just be in order. Then she cupped her aching breasts for a moment. After that she moved up, and felt her tender face, feeling the bleeding wounds and the taste of it in her mouth. She pictured what she'd look like in the morning - a right black eye, no doubt, as well as swollen lips and cheeks. There was no way she wasn't using the glamour - she was going to be cool, unblemished Xander all day, that was for sure. She turned her head toward Ryoga, and muttered, "No way you're not teaching me that move, buster, no way, aagh."

-----

Two blocks away, walked a spiky-haired guy. He sniffed the air, and barely smiled. "Buffy," he muttered with a smile. Oz took several more steps, and then gasped. Grunting he sank to his hands and knees. His grunts turned to growls as his body started growing, then gained fur, his clothes tore open. A moment later a werewolf howled at the sun, to go find his mate, and charged off.

-----

A still lying down Lexa heard the howling and shook her head. "He must have hit me harder than I thought," she muttered to herself, and chuckled. "No full moon in sight, not even a moon, no way Oz could be . . . fucking magic!" Lexa sat up, her body protesting as pain lanced through it. Ignoring it, she got up, grunting, "Buffy." The Slayer could keep herself out of any non-trained, normal human being, but a lust-crazed werewolf might be a problem. Then Lexa started running, ignoring the raging pain in her body, toward where Buffy would be.

-----

Buffy closed the door behind her, and quickly locked it. "Mom! Mom!" she called out with a little dread. Let none of the ones she'd made crazy gotten here first and hurt her mom because she wouldn't let Buffy go out on a date with the crazy or something.

"Yes, honey?" Joyce answered as she came out of the kitchen drying her hands with a towel.

"Oh, thank god," Buffy said and walked quickly toward the kitchen and the back exit, "Close and windows you have open, there are some people not in their right minds out now!"

"I don't have any windows open, honey," Joyce said, and Buffy nodded good. She reached the back exit and quickly locked it.

"You seem pained, Buffy," Joyce said concerned. "Come sit down, and tell me what's the matter."

Buffy sat down, and said, "I screwed up so badly, mom. I wanted to free Xander of his ick reaction toward me, so I did a little love spell, except . . . oh, god, it went wrong, because of Xander's curse." She turned to look in her mother's concerned eyes, and with her own pained ones she said, "Now everyone is magically in love with me, and want me no matter what - or they want me dead because . . . oh, god."

"Oh, don't worry, honey," Joyce said and took her daughter in an embrace pulling her close against her body, "I'm sure the others are solving the problem, right?"

Buffy nodded, sniffing in her stress - she couldn't fight ordinary people that she made this way, friends even, she could only run and it played hell on her and her Slayer sensibilities. "Some of them, at least," she sobbed slightly.

"Ssh, then, everything, will be all right," Joyce soothed her daughter, making the hug a little tighter, letting the up and down motions of her arms on Buffy's back go lower. "Then we have time, time to enjoy ourselves," Joyce spoke huskily.

Buffy's eyes flew open, and she asked with dread, "Mom?" There was just no way! No way the magic could be this sick! Xander hadn't thought it could be either! So just no way.

Joyce pulled her head back to look in her daughter's eyes, and she whispered, "Shh, mommy's here now." She moved her head underneath Buffy's chin and angled her pretty head back a bit. "There's no love like the love between a mother and daughter," Joyce said huskily.

Buffy's eyes were wide, shocked, "No!"

"Don't worry, Buffy, it's time we say hell with society's rules. Mommy _/knows/_ best, and incest _/is/_ best," Joyce spoke with a sexy grin and dipped her mouth down.

"OH, MY GOD!" Buffy screeched and pushed back to get away. Her stool tipped over and she fell backward on the ground, looking up with a dropped jaw as Joyce sensually got off her stool.

Buffy scrambled back before getting up, looking shocked at Joyce advancing on her. "No! Mom, you can't do this, this is wrong, snap out of it, this is the spell!" Buffy pleaded with her mother. But Joyce advanced with swaying hips.

"Come on, Buffy, let our love burn brightly, let our passion be doused only by our juices. Mother and daughter together forever," Joyce spoke with a lustful look.

"No, mom! We are _/not/_ doing this!" Buffy pleaded with horror, circling backwards around the counter.

Joyce stopped and frowned. Buffy stopped as well, hopefully. "Why would you spurn this greatest love of all loves?" Joyce asked Buffy suspiciously. "A little taboo shouldn't stop my daughter, it didn't stop her to make love to a corpse." Buffy gulped, pained at the truth, feeling another icky sensation crawl up her spine as the memories of that night filtered into her. "You're not my daughter!" Joyce suddenly exclaimed, having come to a conclusion.

"What?" Buffy asked in confusion.

"You're a vampire, or some other demon that took my daughter's body, or a shape shifter! You're a monster! My daughter loves me, you don't," Joyce exclaimed with newfound determination.

"I love you, just not in that way," Buffy peeped out quickly, backing away at her suddenly crazy mom.

"My daughter taught me what to do!" Joyce spoke with loving tone mentioning Buffy, and went to the drawer holding knives and a stake.

"Oh, my god," Buffy muttered and quickly turned around to leave. A moment later there was zipping sound, and Buffy rapidly turned her upper body, catching a knife that came sailing right at her.

"Demon! Give me back my daughter!" Joyce raged, grabbing another knife.

Buffy ran into the living room, and heard a powerful back. The front door vibrated and shook, bending partially. Slayer speed made her reach the window in no time and she looked briefly outside. Slayer vision made her identify a werewolf that had just slammed into the door backing away for another good running start. People started coming into the garden, going for the windows. "Oh, shit, Oz?" Buffy muttered, twisting around to catch the next knife, while her armed-to-the-teeth, raging mother flinging obscenities at her came barging from the kitchen.

Buffy quickly jumped to the stairs and started running up it, just as windows were broken in and angry boys, girls, men and women came filtering through them. Cursing Buffy looked left and right, trying to figure out which way to go, as down below with her mother up front, love-sick people started climbing the stairs. Briefly she wondered why the werewolf hadn't shattered the door yet.

-----

OzWolf looked with lustful intent at the door. One more time and it would break down, then he'd have his mate, and mate with her - right after he'd tear all these rivals apart of course. He growled and charged, four feet giving him amazing speed.

A blur charged into the werewolf from the side and the two tumbled onward across the grass, the driveway, then the grass in front of the next house. Oz growled in fury at the interruption, and quickly placed himself in a dominant position to the somewhat familiar looking brunette girl. He didn't care though, his mate was waiting, even now her scent was intoxicating him - scared, sweet, he'd protect her from the rivals than make her his. Thus he bit down at the girl's neck.

Lexa snapped her hands up, still moaning with the pain of what Ryoga had done to her aggravated by the crash into the werewolf and the tumble afterwards. She managed to grab Oz's head and neck, before he could close his teeth around her neck and kill her. His mouth was still open, showing two rows of razor sharp teeth. He growled in angry frustration, and a drop of drool fell down, landing on Lexa's right cheek. "Oh, Buffy better survive this," Lexa hissed straining to keep the wolf with his better leverage off of her, "because I'm going to kill her for it."

With a grunt she yanked Oz left, but the wolf quickly reasserted his position. He growled harder and put more power behind reaching Lexa's neck. "Ugh, sorry about this, Oz, but you'll thank me later," Lexa said, and pulled back her right hand quickly and rammed her fist upward into the wolf's head. Oz yelped at the force of the blow, and went with backing off just a bit. That bit was enough for Lexa to pull her feet under him, and kick him off. She quickly got up, groaning at the pain that came from every part of her body, and watched as Oz finished two good tumbles. The wolf righted itself and charged the offending female, and Lexa charged the offending wolf. At the last moment Lexa flung herself to her left. The jumping Oz missed, and Lexa slammed her fists in a double handed blow with all she had in the back of Oz's neck. Oz yelped as he crashed down powerfully, tumbled and stayed still.

"Phew," Lexa muttered as the unconscious Oz started turning back to himself - back to a naked self. Lexa didn't care, she just sat down, and hope someone called an ambulance for her, because there was no way she was going to walk.

-----

Buffy reached a window, and looked out of it. There were more people there, but they didn't seem to notice her. She looked behind her where the mob was coming, barely five meters left from her, some armed with deadly weapons. With the decision made for her, she opened the window and quickly jumped down, landing smoothly behind the people. They noticed of course, but Buffy looked up, seeing her mother lean out, and obviously pressed under the pressure of the others. "Mom," Buffy said softly with deep concern, hoping the love-crazed fools would turn around and go back down the stairs instead of jumping out after her, or tossing there mom out, or crushing her so hard she'd be injured. She hesitated, looking up, willing her mother not to be hurt with. Thus she forgot the charging people downstairs, who were just about to reach her.

Buffy's eyes then widened as she felt energy like static electricity blast past her. She watched with wide eyes how the throng of people were pushed back, blown back, falling backward. A moment later Deo walked past her, looking dangerously at the mom. "You think you can take me?" Deo asked, releasing another wave of chi, keeping the people back somewhat for now.

Buffy took a fearful step back as Deo turned around to face her, and smiled sexily. There was no way in any level of hell she could defeat her. "Heh, heh, heh, hi," Buffy muttered, backing up, stealing a look of stairs and felt relief as her mother and thus the others were no longer at the window.

"Hi, Buffy, let me whisk you away from these fools so we can enjoy each other's company," Deo said suggestively.

"Uh, well, I don't suppose you would have a moral problem with murder and rape, do you?" Buffy asked terrified.

"Hmm," Deo said, thinking about it. "I know I should, but strangely, not really."

-----

"Ready?" Giles asked Amy, as they finished the preparations, having set up a beaker with frothy stuff, candles and a pentagram.

"Yeah, should I turn Lotion back first?" Amy asked the watcher.

"No, I don't think we want a magically induced love-crazed woman with the power to tear us limb from limb walking around," Giles answered her quickly. "Let's remove the crazy love first, and then turn her back. And then Buffy and my love can blossom."

"My love," Amy corrected, making the two glare at each other.

"Let us just complete this spell, shall we?" Giles suggested quickly going to the beaker. Amy nodded.

Then as Giles started circling the brush over the beaker, they both chanted, "Goddess Diana, goddess of the love and hunt, we, thy humble servants, ask thee to take your great power away. Let love once more run its natural course, no longer shall we need your help. Goddess Diana, hear us, favor us, depart!" During the chant green energy started circling around the pot with every greater power and effects. Finally after the last word it blasted outward, and Giles and Amy wavered for a moment.

They blinked, and looked at each other. "My goodness, I was a royal prick, indeed," Giles said with some shock over his behavior under the spell.

"Yes, well, I wasn't exactly a nice girl, either," Amy said embarrassedly. She then turned to the LotionRat, and said, "Speaking of not having been a nice girl." She lifted her hands and said, "Goddess Hecate, work thy will, let the clean one stand once more!" A white blast of energy came from her hands and hit the tied up rat.

The effect was instant, with energy swirling around her she grew rapidly, the clothes and ropes tore and snapped. The fur receded and a moment later a naked Lotion sat on the counter. Amy and Giles looked at her for a moment as she herself inspected her returned body, and then the Brit quickly turned away. "Yes, well, I apologize for-" he started.

"Oh, shut up," Lotion said jumping off the counter and regarding Amy for a moment. "I should kill you," Lotion said angrily, "but I think my future husband would frown on that."

"I'm sorry," Amy said quickly, taking a step back toward the exit just in case.

"Ah," Giles said, drawing their attention to him, "I believe Buffy left some spare clothes of hers in my office; I doubt they'd be comfortable, but they might just be big enough they cover you up, somewhat and don't tear apart." Lotion sighed and casually walked around the counter to get to the office.

-----

Buffy bumped with her back against the tree in the backyard. Deo stopped in front of her, smiling. "So beautiful," she said, as behind her the mob started to regain their courage as their numbers swelled with the people from inside.

Suddenly there was something almost undetectable in the air, and everyone that Buffy could see wavered for a few moments, then looked confused. "My," Deo said looking around as the mob started to quickly disperse, looking confused and apparently deciding to forget what had happened, "what a trip."

"You no longer think I'm beautiful?" Buffy asked the woman hopefully, but rather uselessly.

"Not particularly, no," Deo answered somewhat forcibly, apparently not happy with the event.

"Mom!" Buffy called as the thread of Deo doing . . . stuff to her was gone. She quickly ran into the house and saw the last of the mob going out the door. Joyce looked somewhat dazed around, while Willow, Cordelia and Jenny joined around her. Joyce looked over to Buffy and the Slayer quickly ran over relieved. She grabbed her mother around the neck and hugged tightly.

"Slayer strength, honey!" Joyce gurgled out, and Buffy quickly let go.

"What happened?" Cordelia asked suspiciously, narrowing her eyes at Buffy.

Joyce seemed to agree with the cheerleader, because she looked sternly at Buffy. When Buffy didn't answer right away, she demanded, "Buffy."

"I'm sorry!" Buffy exclaimed loudly then, with large eyes. "It was me. I just wanted to get rid of Xander's ick. The spell and Xander's curse didn't agree with each other. I'm so sorry! Please, please, please forgive me! Pleeeaase!"

"You cast a love spell on Xander?" Jenny exclaimed in horror.

"Technically, I didn't," Buffy said sheepishly, looking down at the floor embarrassedly.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Willow exclaimed, raising her arms in exasperation.

Buffy muttered her answer. At which point Joyce request, "What?"

Buffy answered again, this time louder, "I blackmailed Amy into doing it for me. She's a witch, and I caught her using magic to get an extension on some research paper. I threatened to have you two bind her powers."

"Oh, my god!" Willow exclaimed shocked. "Buffy, casting a love spell, is . . . is . . . very, very bad!"

**"-Buffy!-"** Joyce took over resolutely, "You ever even go _/near/_ magic again, and I will guarantee you, I will throw you out of the house!"

"No problem! Uh, uh! No magic for this girl, not ever again, no sirree, Bob!" Buffy exclaimed happily. Then she frowned and added, "Well, unless Willow, Jenny and Giles say it's the only to keep the Earth from ending."

Joyce frowned at her, gauging Buffy's sincerity, then shuddered as she remembered again what she'd almost done. "I never want to feel that again, ugh. Now, Buffy, you will go to your room to think about what you did, while I think of an appropriate punishment."

"You tell her, Mrs. Summers," Cordelia butted in happily. "She's nothing but trouble." Jenny and Willow turned to look at her. "What?" Cordelia asked them annoyed. "She made me kiss, her I think I'm entitled to some payback." Willow and Jenny looked at each other and shrugged, Cordelia had a point.

"Hi, guys, glad to see you're all back to normal."

They turned around to see a heavily beaten Lexa being supported by a naked Oz. "Now, could someone please call me an ambulance?" Lexa asked them with a whimper.

Joyce wanted to cover Buffy's eyes, but the Slayer was already running to the girl, crying, "Oh, my god! Xander!"

Willow did the same a moment later, and Cordelia just stayed staring at Oz's naked physique, then quickly getting ticked off other women could see him like that as well. She went over with a scowl. That left Jenny and Joyce to attempt to be modest and look away, while Buffy picked up the phone.

"Ryoga might need one too, I head to hit him with his own umbrella a few times," Lexa said with a weak smile.

-----

The next day Lexa walked with a little difficulty into the school. Buffy at her side. She had gotten lucky - she was hurt, but nothing was broken. So a week to two weeks of healing the doctor had said, would do the trick. Lexa was determined to shorten that to a few days using her chi exercises.

"So, how bad is it?" Buffy asked her weakly, still shook up from the ordeal.

"You've had Giles' lecture yet?" Lexa asked her.

Buffy nodded, shivering as she remembered his anger, and his disappointment in her. "I'm just glad he didn't bring out the cane after all," Buffy whispered, never having felt more miserable then during Giles rant, not even her mother the day before grounding her for two weeks at the end had managed to cut so emotionally deeply as Giles.

"Well, I think Jenny is busy forgiving you, as is Willow understanding how you felt and all, besides, what are best friends for?" Lexa said to Buffy with a smile.

"I apologized, and apologized, to all of them, but I guess I deserve it," Buffy replied, and looked down.

Lexa slung her right arm around the Slayer's shoulders and continued, "I've managed to convince Lotion not to kick your ass all over the continent." Buffy looked up pained. Lexa smiled and said, "She'll come around soon enough. Cordelia . . . well, she's Cordelia." It brought a weak smile to Buffy's face, but it was progress. "Oz though . . . you made him wolf out, Buff. He almost killed people, me included. That's going to be several weeks, possibly months of groveling."

Buffy looked down again, and muttered, "I'm sorry. What about Amy?"

"I don't think she's Scooby material, Buffy, but Jenny said she would take her under her wing to at least instill the basics and the morals of magic in her - make sure she'd never do that again, blackmail or no blackmail," Lexa told her, as they reached their lockers and turned to them.

"I'm sorry," Buffy said again, pained.

To Be Continued . . .

Author's notes:

I hope everyone liked it. As usual: feedback please!


	27. part 27

----27----

"Say it!" Buffy desperately demanded, close to crying in the darkness of the school. Only some moonlight made the school not quite completely dark.

"You need to hear it?" Xander asked her, standing across from her, a tear flowing down his cheek. "Okay, I don't." Xander slowly turned to leave.

"No!" Buffy exclaimed desperately, tears flowing down her cheek. "A person doesn't just wake up one day, and stop loving someone!" From somewhere out of her leather jacket she produced six-shot gun, saying, "Love is forever!"

"Oh, my god," Xander said with wide-eyed shock.

"I know how to use it!" Buffy warned him, but in his panic Xander turned around and started running through a few doors out on an outside walkway. They were on the second floor, and the way down to the courtyard was long. Buffy was running after him, and cried, "Stop! Don't make me use it, -/bitch/-!"

Xander stopped in shock and slowly turned around and regarded the tears on Buffy's face. She stood just at the double doors, the gun pointing at him. "Okay, let's calm down. You give me the gun, and then we can talk-"

"STOP IT!" Buffy screamed hysterically. "Stop talking to me like I'm some stupid kid!"

BANG!

Right as Buffy finished the last word, she accidentally pulled the trigger. Xander's reflexes kicked in with unnatural speed, making him look surprised. His upper body jerked to his right, and then a powerful and sharp pain blossomed in his left shoulder. "Aah!" he yelled, his right hand grabbing the wound reflexively, as he continued twisting around, making Buffy look with shocked pain at the even. With another reflex Xander removed his right hand from his shoulder and grabbed the railing keeping him from falling over. He winced as another sharp pain tore through his shoulder when he put pressure on it. "What the . . .?" he grunted painfully, straightening up and grabbing his shoulder. He looked up, confused, seeing a stunned Buffy standing there pointing a gun at him. "Buffy? You sh-" Xander wavered, wobbled for a moment and put a clear gaze on Buffy.

"Grace?" Buffy/James asked him in both shock and confusion, but fear more so: did he hit Grace somewhere vital? Didn't he always do that? She's alive.

"I'm here, James," Xander/Grace said holding out a hand to James' gun hand shaking about. Xander/Grace smiled and close her hand around a gun, and gently took it, "I forgive you."

"I killed you, I'm so sorry," Buffy/James sobbed, shrinking down.

Xander/Grace took her in a hug, and said, "I'm the one who should be sorry. I felt like I didn't love you anymore. I do, I still do." Buffy/James looked up into Xander/Grace's face, and the latter dipped down. They kissed, deeply, passionately, but mostly lovingly. Buffy/James barely noticed the surprising feel of a girl beneath the illusion covering her up; it was really only better for him. Light emerged around them, bluish and it swirled upward to a suddenly opening white star of light. Then two denser formations of light emerged from the both of them: one blue, one orange. Slowly they circled around each other, and up into the light.

Buffy and Xander were still kissing, gently, two sets of girl lips to each other, one covered by the illusion of a guy - and then they abruptly broke apart at a cry from Xander. "AAARGH!" he yelled staggering back, grabbing his bullet wound.

"Xander!" Buffy said in concern. Their kiss quickly forgotten she came over to his shoulder, holding his arm steady. "Oh, my god," she muttered, the memories of James fresh in her mind.

"Buffy!" Xander yelled, making Buffy flinch back and look up at him. "YOU SHOT ME!" Xander screamed.

"I'm sorry, Xan!" Buffy whimpered.

"I can't believe you /shot/ me!" Xander shouted angrily, wincing and holding his shoulder tighter.

"Well, I was under control of James, a-" Buffy apologized.

Xander interrupted her, "Didn't stop me from getting out of the way, did it? You remember the anti mind control techniques Deo taught us, don't you?"

Buffy whimpered, and looked down in embarrassment, blushing. "I can't believe you /shot/ me!" Xander yelled again, pissed off. "Do you hate me that much?"

"No, no, it was James and . . ." Buffy looked down again at Xander's continuing glare.

"Don't just /stand/ there!" Xander yelled at her, looking up. "Call an ambulance, they need to take the damn bullet out!"

"O-okay!" Buffy said quickly, then turned around and ran as the rest of the Scooby Gang, Lotion up front, came around the corner.

"Xander!" Lotion called out in fear at him clutching his shoulder, then glared at Buffy.

"You're still alive!" Willow yelled with enthusiasm as Oz, Cordelia and Giles stayed absent a bit. Willow wrapped herself around Buffy first, and then around Xander without thinking, making him yell out in pain. "Sorry!" Willow squeaked and then looked at the bullet wound. "Huh? Weren't you supposed to shoot Buffy?"

"No, Buffy hates me, that's why she let James shoot me," Xander called out and glared at the uncertain Buffy. "You /shot/ me, Buffy! And get the damn ambulance!" Buffy whimpered and ran off to find the nearest phone.

-----

Lexa lay on the stretcher, slowly being wheeled to the ambulance. The Scooby Gang was around her, Buffy a bit further away then the others, horribly embarrassed, blushing furiously.

Lexa grumbled once and then said again for good measure, "I still can't believe you fucking /shot/ me, Buffy!"

"Ah, yeah, well . . . I didn't mean too," Buffy answered turning her head away quickly making everyone frown, and her blush even deeper if that was possible.

"You fucking shot me!" Lexa yelled angrily again as the two medical technicians looked at each other and decided not to say anything.

"Lexa!" Willow said in shock. "Watch your language! You don't curse."

Lexa turned her head the other way to look incredulously at her best friend since kindergarten, and said gently, "Willow." Willow turned her head slightly walking next to the stretcher to pay extra attention. "SHE FUCKING SHOT ME!" Willow flinched back, smiling nervously, as Lexa continued, "If I'm not supposed to swear now, exactly when - god, damn it - am I?"

Giles was furiously pinching his nose to try to alleviate his frustration. Lotion had done nothing but fawn over Xander till the paramedics arrived while he had grumbled angrily; they were all getting on his nerves. "Willow, I must concur with Lexa. However deplorable resorting to cursing is, this does seem like one of the rare times it is appropriate."

"A man needs his curses," Oz stated coolly, making his girlfriend squeeze their casual one-handed embrace tighter in appreciation. Willow pouted as two people agreed with Xander against her. The paramedics didn't notice Oz referring to Lexa as a 'he', or just decided to ignore it. They reached the ambulance and Lexa was quickly put inside. Buffy and Willow both surged forward to get in the ambulance with her.

"Family?" one paramedic asked, halting the two women for a bit.

Buffy snorted folding her hands over her chest and gave the man her patented Slayer-death-glare, "His dad is a drunk and in jail for selling him to the Chinese mob. His mother is barely better. If anyone of his family were here he wouldn't have want them with him."

The paramedic, blinked and the cleared the way, saying, "Okay then."

Buffy and Willow were in the back of the ambulance in no time, and waved goodbye to the other Scoobies. Willow said, "We'll see you at the hospital, hurry up!"

A little later the ambulance drove off with great speed.

-----

Buffy and Willow watched from their positions at Xander's head as the medical technician fussed over Lexa, starting with giving her a local anesthetic in her shoulder. Willow's lip quivered. As the shock of Lexa shot wore off and the full concept of how close her lover and best friend had come to death entered her mind, she became upset very quickly. She turned to Buffy, and said, "How could you have shot, Lexa?"

"I was possessed!" Buffy protested, unable to get the guilty look out of her eyes.

"Lexa kept himself from getting killed, didn't she?" Willow shrieked at Buffy. The medical technician's eyes fluttered over to the girls who were talking nonsense, and quickly ignored them, in favor of his patient. Latching on to what Lexa had said earlier, Willow asked, "Do you hate Lexa that much?"

"I do not hate, Lexa!" Buffy returned heatedly, loud enough for Lexa to turn her head and take the battling girls in; who seemed to be about ready to turn it into a cat fight. Buffy turned her eyes down with guilt, and muttered, "Okay, I may resent him just a-"

"That does it!" Willow shrieked and surged forward, grabbing Buffy's hair with her right hand, and Buffy's left breast with her left. She squeezed Buffy's breast painfully hard, while yanking her by the hear, screeching, "You hussy!"

Buffy quickly returned the favor out of pure instinct, yanking Willow's top which ripped partially down the middle, increasing the cleavage. Red hair was pulled at the same time, as Buffy accused back, "Bitch!"

"Slut!" Willow called back, readjusting her grip on Buffy's chest, making her top make an equally ripping sound, yanking Buffy's hair again. By this time both Lexa and the medical technician was looking at the two in surprise, neither having the mind to stop the girls.

"Shrew!" Buffy accused, yanking the red hair harder, getting a painful yelp out of Willow.

Buffy let out an equally painful grunt as Willow increased her strength as well, pulling Buffy partially off her seat, and yelled, "Corpse-loving skank!"

"Vagrant witch!" Buffy cried back, tears now freely pouring down her face. "I don't hate, Lexa, you stupid cow! I hate myself!" Instantly Willow's strength left her, and looked into Buffy's teary eyes. "I hate myself," Buffy said in a low voice, breaking down. "Just one stupid moment; one decision where I let my stupid curiosity get the better of my common sense, and I . . . I . . . See? I can't say it either! I disgust myself. I deserve Xander's ick. I . . . I don't deserve to be forgiven. Why did Grace forgive James? I-I d-don't understand. I-It's why I couldn't b-break free . . . he deserved t-to go through every ex-ex horrible moment of his own personal hell over and over; I didn't . . ." Buffy sniffed, and looked defeated down to her hands, before continuing, "I didn't want to. I wanted to give him what I deserved."

"Oh, Buffy," Willow whimpered and then enveloped her into a crushing hug. "I'm sorry I yelled at you, and pulled your hair, and ripped your clothes, and pinched your breasts; I forgive you." The two girls hung sobbingly into each other's embrace.

Lexa and the male nurse shared an incredulous look, and Lexa then turned back to the Slayer and the Witch, "HELLO! We're in an ambulance here, and I'm the one with a gunshot wound!"

The two girls peeked down at Lexa over their arms, looked at each other for a moment, and then sank their upper bodies down, giving Lexa a loose double hug, careful about her shoulder. "Okay," Lexa said sharply, then deflated, "okay, this is better."

-----

The Scooby Gang was sitting in the waiting area of the hospital, all in varying degrees of worry. Willow paced back and forth in deep concern. Lotion was following the witch with her head for some reason. Her head moving left, then her head moving right, and then left again. She had a scowl on her face which darkened by the moment. Finally she couldn't take it anymore, and told the witch, "Will you quit that? Lexa is tough, she'll survive a little bullet through the shoulder!"

Willow turned to regard the Amazon, giving her a huge glare. "Actually," Giles said calmly. "Unless the bullet hit an artery and it takes an extreme amount of time to get to a hospital; everyone will survive a bullet into the shoulder - neither happened with Lexa, we got here quick, and there wasn't a fountain of blood."

"See!" Lotion said, pointing at Giles.

Giles thought over his words, and said, "Unless you're allergic to the aesthetic and the doctors don't know; you'll die of the drugs." Everyone looked at Giles with extremely worried expressions. Giles finally noticed and said, "Ah, I'm sure that's not the case with Lexa, it's very rare."

"Giles!" Buffy shrieked. "Don't say those things."

"Yes, I will endeavor to keep such observations to myself from now on," Giles said sagely, and relaxed a bit.

"I'll pace if I want to pace," Willow told Lotion, and continued to do just that, making Lotion groan and settle back in the uncomfortable plastic chair, contemplating if she should beat Willow up.

A little later, much to everyone's relief for many different reasons, Lexa was wheeled out in a wheelchair. On her shoulder was now a nice thick bandage over her stitches. The nurse that wheeled her in was hot; raven black hair, and a lovely nurse's uniform - obviously. She was made up and smiled down at Lexa, who was smiling up at her and her breasts: her head back in her neck. The nurse giggled, and then Lexa got up. "Thanks," she said with a smile.

"Not a problem," she said with a smile, winked, and slowly turned around. As she walked back, pushing the empty wheelchair in front of her, she swayed her ass, which Lexa admired for a moment.

Lexa then turned to her stunned friends, and pointing her thumb back at the retreating nurse, said softly with a grin, "Lesbian!"

"XANDER HARRIS!" Willow suddenly shrieked and rapidly came over to him. "I cannot believe you! Here we are all worried, and you take your sweet time flirting with nurses!"

Lexa gave her a wounded puppy dog look, then grinned, and said, "You saw her. You'd have flirted with her too."

"We're all examining you! We don't have time for nurses!" Willow accused him.

Lexa's grinned deepened and said, "Ah, shucks, Will. I knew I was hot, but that I'm _/that/_ hot."

The Scoobies stayed silent, looking at the train wreck about to happen. Willow's face grew redder and redder with anger, glaring at Lexa . . . then she suddenly surged forward and wrapped Lexa in a hug, pushing her head just above Lexa's breasts. "You're okay! I'm so glad you're okay!" she whimpered, making everyone sigh in relief that Willow wouldn't tear the hospital apart in her anger.

A moment later a blonde blur attached herself to Lexa, hugging her along with Willow. Lexa made a grunt and wrapped her arms around her two best friends. Giles came over, looking mildly miffed at the sight of his charges making such unseemly shows of public affection, and said in is characteristic stiff British upper lip, "It is good to see you are fine, Lexa." Jenny wrapped one arm around his waist and smiled and nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, 'cause now we get to go to school again tomorrow!" Cordelia said with a big grin. "Wait! Why is this good again?" she added, and Lexa had the actual audacity to chuckle, making the cheerleader glower; but anyone who really knew her could see the shiny stars of happiness in her eyes.

"Good to have you still around, man," Oz spoke in his usual unflappable manner, but obviously relieved.

Lotion finally came up to Willow and Buffy and yanked them with one movement of both her arms off of Lexa and then wrapped herself around her. Two sets of breasts pressed close together, and Lexa wrapped her hands happily around the buxom Amazon's waist. Suffice it to say; any male apart from Giles in view of the two was staring. "Guns are evil - no finesse, no skill, only losers wield them - but my great warrior future husband can handle them," Lotion said with a big grin, squeezing harder.

"Ugh, do watch out for the wound, Lotion," Lexa said with a smile while Buffy and Willow glowered at Lotion for being manhandled by her.

"Sorry, just want my future husband to know I appreciate him," Lotion said with a smile.

"Hmm, not that I don't appreciate this; but how about we get out of here?" Lexa asked the others, and they complied eagerly, not liking the hospital.

-----

All of them had escorted Lexa back to her apartment, much to her annoyance. A little bullet hole that was completely numb by local anesthetic wouldn't suddenly turn her into a cripple! She could still fight her way through several vamps and demons, no problem. But of course, they wouldn't listen, and so they were now standing in front of her apartment building - all of them.

"See, I'm here, safe and sound; can we all get off the overreacting horse now?" Lexa asked them all with some annoyance, but she was still smiling.

"Ah, yes, well, I suppose we should be getting the others home safe and sound," Giles answered, and Lexa nodded.

Hugging and goodbyes were exchanged one by one, until it was Buffy's turn, and she asked, "Lexa, could I talk to you in private for a bit - and no, this is not overreacting escorting you to your apartment door."

"Uh, sure," Lexa said, and then gave the others another, more general, goodbye. They waved back and started dispersing, as Lexa led Buffy inside.

A bit later they had entered her apartment and Lexa asked Buffy, "Do you want something to drink?"

"No, not really," Buffy said as she walked over to the living area of Lexa's apartment, sitting down in the leather couch facing the kitchen. Lexa went to set next to her, to her right.

"Okay, so what gives, Buffy?" Lexa asked the other girl.

"I'm sorry," she answered her best male friend's female version, and then a flood came from her mouth with such speed, Willow would have had trouble keeping up, "I'm sorry that I was so stupid, sorry that I let a quick bit of passion, desire and curiosity overcome common sense. I'm sorry I did it again and resorted to magic to get you back. I'm sorry I couldn't stop myself today, sorry I got so caught up in my hatred and disgust for myself and James. I'm sorry."

Lexa grabbed Buffy's hands and pulled her to herself, and enveloped her in a hug. She felt Buffy hug her back fiercely, apparently not wanting to let her go. Being quite strong herself these days, she could handle Buffy's strength, but not indefinitely. Going over Buffy's words to think of the best way to handle this, she squeezed back with her own strength until she heard Buffy let out a little grunt and she eased up a bit. "It's okay, Buff," Lexa whispered gently, making the blonde look up. "You're forgiven; I've forgiven you a long time ago. Forgiving you isn't as easy as getting rid of a queasy sensation though; but look, I'm holding you completely like this, couldn't do it so fully back then, not without Willow present at least."

Buffy added a dazzling smile to her hopeful look, making her look amazing. Lexa planted a quick kiss on her forehead, and then continued, "Besides, you were a teenager; us teenagers are often ruled by our hormones, doesn't make you evil. And you know what? I'm not any smarter in that stuff than you are. If I were, I'd have swept you off your feet last year already."

Buffy felt her smile grow warmer, just before she gave non-committal grunt, and said a bit morose, "Oh, I think I got you licked in the hormonal stupidity, Xan. Think about it; I couldn't choose between the living, human guy that had three girls chasing him and a demon-animated _/corpse/_." Buffy shivered for a moment at the concept of having slept with that, before continuing, "A vampire cursed with a soul, whose curse I never investigated. An immortal vampire that came to me hiding in shadows, watching me and my friends risk our lives and flashing our hot bodies at him, harrowing me to do more vampire dusting, while when I ask him for help he's all; 'Are you nuts? I'm not suicidal!'" Buffy blinked as she finished her rant at herself, which turned out to be out Angel as well, and some things her hormones had made her forget about him resurfaced. She suddenly blanched, and said in horror, "Ack! God, I was stupid! Lexa, promise me, if I ever start making moon eyes at a demonic thing again, or at some smooth talking mysterious coward dropping cryptics from the shadows giving me gifts; beat the crap out of me!"

"Sure, Buffy, hereby solemnly promised," Lexa told her friend, and then asked with a straight face, only a twinkle in her eyes betraying her true feelings, "Should I go for getting you back to your senses, or kill you."

Buffy blinked, thought pensively for a moment, and then said, "Senses, but if that doesn't work, kill me, please, send me to the great beyond."

"You got it," Lexa answered and they looked into each other's eyes. Suddenly they both burst into giggles, laughing until their stomachs hurt while holding onto each other. "Oh, god," Lexa managed between giggle fits, "I'm such a girl."

"Yep," Buffy said and snuggled up to old, newfound female friend. Her head rested on Lexa's shoulder and upper left breast, while sniffling occasionally still. -Hmm, this doesn't feel so bad,- Buffy thought, and then blanched, screwing her eyes shot, -What the hell does that mean?-

-----

Willow looked up with large eyes of shock, incomprehension, and worry. Next to her stood Lotion who looked up with sparkling eyes. On Willow's other side was Buffy who looked up with somewhat of a combination of the other two. They were in the forest on the mountain that framed Sunnydale's north side. Some old branches was lying on the dirt, as well as some plants here and there between the trees. "Lexa, please, you can't do this, you're not even fully healed from the gunshot yet?" Willow called upward, once again, trying futilely to talk her best friend since kindergarten out of it.

Said friend, one super hot girl, was tied to tree a meter upward. "Hit it, Ryoga!" she called out with dogged determination.

"Ryoga! You can't! Don't do it!" Willow pleaded with the eternal lost boy, hoping to put some sense in the other guy. Said guy was standing on a tree branch a few ways off, holding a boulder about half Lexa's height in his hands. A rope was tied like a net around it, and connected to a thick solid branch about halfway between Ryoga and Lexa. "He'll get hurt! Badly! He isn't even healed yet!"

Ryoga let go. "NO!" Willow said in shock as she saw the massive boulder swing across the arc . . . straight for Lexa.

"YAH!" Lexa yelled, bringing her right hand and only free thing of her forward. Her index finger stretched out, attempting to peer into the rock to find it's mythical weak center. With a solid, muffled crash the boulder crushed Lexa to the tree. Willow felt like she was holding her heart protectively with her hands, and then came, "OW! That hurts!"

"OF COURSE IT HURTS, YOU INSANE LOON!" Willow shrieked out with worry. "YOU GOT CRUSHED BY A BOULDER!" Ryoga was already pulling a rope, reeling the boulder back to him. Willow continued ranting, "AND I CAN PUT YOU BACK TOGETHER AGAIN! JUST LIKE WITH THE STUPID FIRE!"

"Future husband is one amazing warrior," Lotion said with a proud, in-love smile.

"DON'T YOU ENCOURAGE HIM, YOU BITCH!" Willow shrieked at Lotion with worry.

Lotion turned her head to Willow with a scowl. "Again!" Lexa told Ryoga, despite the pain in her body, determined.

"NO!" Willow shrieked but the boulder was already on his way. Lexa tried to smash her finger through the boulder's weak spot once again . . . and predictably failed.

"AAGH!" she yelled as the boulder crushed her with characteristic mercilessness. Ryoga grinned as he pulled the boulder back again, liking the fact that he was getting some sort of payback after all.

Willow then turned to Buffy, and yelled, "Why aren't you saying anything? That's your best friend up there getting crushed by a giant rock!"

Buffy looked at Willow and said, "Well, I feel bad, but . . . well . . . uhm . . . she wants it and it doesn't seem to be killing him." When she looked into Willow's steaming face she took a nervous step back and muttered, "I'll help with the bandaging?"

Willow shrieked, mumbled something and Buffy flew back till she landed against a tree somewhat painful and stayed there - pinned a meter and a half above the ground. "Huh?" she muttered, looking around.

"Go!" Willow's attention was back to the horror in front of her eyes, as the large rock once gain swung without care to crush her best friend.

Lexa yelled out in pain once again, failing the weak spot once more. "Will," Buffy whined flailing her arms and legs to find someway of getting down. "Let me down from here."

"No, you stay put, you . . . you slutty nincompoop!" Willow told the Slayer angrily, who sighed and gave up on getting free; although she was pretty certain she could - she _/was/_ the Slayer after all. It was probably better to let Willow deal with her worry this way than in some . . . less constructive way.

As Ryoga pulled the rock back, Lotion moved her hand through her long hair and said breathlessly, "He'll be the greatest warrior on the planet and _/my/_ husband."

"THAT'S IT!" Willow shrieked and jumped Lotion, clawing and punching at the much more stronger girl. Lotion shrieked back and returned the favor; for some reason not interest in using her martial arts skill to beat Willow into submission within moments, and so a big hair-pulling, scratching cat fight started.

"Again!" Lotion called out to Ryoga; only having eyes for her training.

As Willow's concentration broke at a particular vicious pull on her hair from Lotion, Buffy dropped to the ground. "Oof! My butt," she whimpered, already stroking the offended spot. She looked from a Lexa in new pain, the rock crushing against her, to the catfight, and sighed, "This is going to be one of those days."

-----

"My god! What happened to you two?" Jenny called concerned, putting her work down on the counter in the library, watching as the Scooby Gang entered it. Lotion and Willow were a mess: hair in disarray, dirt everywhere, some bloody scratching covering both, while their clothes were ripped in some places making their cleavages even bigger than usual.

"Catfight," Buffy remarked dryly, still in pristine order. She came in just after her best friend, and had long since lost the interest to be all miffed about the situation. "Although without the seemingly obligatory lesbian sex afterwards."

"Buffy," Giles said aghast, but Buffy gave him a look that made him turn his head guiltily away. It was obvious that 'putting down her work' had been a cover to keep the kids from noticing what the two supposedly adults were really up to; witnessed by the fact Jenny's 'work' was upside down. After watching one of her best friends be in a good, old-fashioned, and childish catfight, while her other best friends let a rock beat her half-into the hospital for several hours straight, Buffy had _/really/_ long since lost the ability to be upset, or even annoyed enough to make a comment about the adults' 'work'.

Then Lexa came in. "Oh, my god!" Jenny exclaimed in shock at the bloodied bruised mess, who was smiling broadly. "That can't be a catfight! What happened? Demon?" Jenny gasped out aghast, rooted to the floor at the bruised Lexa.

"Nope, training," Buffy muttered casually moving around Willow and Lotion and walking casually to a chair.

"Training?" Giles said, shocked himself. "What kind of bloody training?"

"The best ever!" Lexa exclaimed happily, then coughed and groaned. "I already feel stronger!" Thus making Jenny and Giles look in disbelief at the mess she was. More grunting and moaning, and she added, "Although I could use a little bandaging probably."

"Uh, uh! I'm not doing it!" Willow exclaimed upset as she turned around to face Lexa; except that Lotion was in the way. "I warned you! I bandaged you with the fire, but not this! Nope, I warned you! OUCH!" The exclaim of pain came just after Lotion slapped Willow hard, the sound of skin against skin reverberating throughout the library.

"Ungrateful, cold-hearted bitch," Lotion hissed, and turned around, leaving a stunned, but rapidly starting to boil Willow. "I can't see what you see in her, future husband," Lotion said bubbly, and going over to Lexa, taking a gentle hold of her. "I'll bandage you up, my great warrior." Lexa smiled gratefully.

Buffy rolled her eyes, got up, and yanked Willow back into a chair. "Hey!" she protested.

"I've seen enough girl on girl catfighting for the day," Buffy remarked dryly, sitting back down into the chair with finality.

"I wasn't- . . . I wouldn't . . ." Willow tried to protest, and then deflated, leaving Lotion to maneuver Lexa over to a chair while a concerned Jenny came over with a box of first aid supplied.

-----

Lexa and Ryoga shimmied along the small path between the rows of chairs, in which people were sitting. A big screen was to the front of the large room. "You're gonna love this, Ryoga! Nothing like taking in a got movie with other people in the cinema," Lexa said with a grin on her face and several different kinds of snacks in his arms. "Not to mention drinking and eating tasty snacks."

"We _/do/_ have movie theaters in Japan, you know. As well as chips and candy," Ryoga said, wondering how he got himself roped into doing this. It had been three days since Lexa first started her training, and had gone through it another two times by now. She was still beat up, although makeup hid most of it.

"I'll bet not as great a one as here though," Lexa returned with a grin, finally reaching her seat and slowly sitting down in it.

As Ryoga did the same for his seat he said, "Yep, probably ours are bigger; Japan is all about getting the best new techno toys first."

"But did you ever go to one, Mr. Super Martial Arts Master?" Lexa asked with a little crooked grin - one side of her lips was still somewhat swollen and couldn't move properly. Ryoga finally had to concede defeat, nodding slightly. Lexa nodded enthusiastically - this was going great. "Well then, sit back, and enjoy."

-----

"That was good," Ryoga said as the two of them steadily left the cinema.

"Of course - Hollywood never fails to deliver a good ninety minutes of mindless explosions and action," Lexa said with a grin, swinging her umbrella lightly. There were many more people in the lobby of the cinema, and the two of them had to make an occasional swerve. Finally they exited the building, and Lexa added, "Which is a lot of the critique on Hollywood - they don't seem to be able to produce anything not mindless these days." She snickered at Ryoga.

"The fights were pathetic though," Ryoga said, thinking of the 'action stars' fighting. "I could defeat them all with both my hands tied behind my back. They can't even throw a decent punch."

Lexa nodded in agreement, "No chi, no understanding of true martial arts - all weak." Ryoga looked at the boy in girl form, watching her casually flip her umbrella open to guard herself from a spray of warm water. A car drove by, and Ryoga was forced to the same thing with a spray of cold water that was splashed up from the car, lest he turned into a pig. "What did you think of the babes though?" Lexa asked him with a grin.

Ryoga raised his eyebrows to go over the film, and said, "The blonde was pretty nice."

"Oh, yeah, eight out of ten easily, but the Asian was the best, nine point nine," Lexa said with sparkling eyes.

"None of them as good as Akane, though," Ryoga said with a smile, taking in a deep breath.

Lexa chuckled and put her hands behind her head, nodding, "As hot as she was, Willow, and Lotion outclass her. Which is odd, strictly esthetically speaking, a guy would probably think the Asian is better than Willow, but still . . . Willow lately makes me go rawr - and Lotion always did, for obvious reasons."

The two rounded a corner, slowly heading towards Ryoga's place of temporary residence. "Ah," Lexa muttered, lowering her arms again, and turned to look at Ryoga. "This what I like about you, Ryoga. We can have some good guy-guy talk."

"This coming from you," Ryoga said with a wry face.

Lexa looked down, noticing her breasts encased in her shirt, and chuckled. She looked around, and then rubbed the ring. A moment later Xander was walking there - a Xander who didn't have a scratch on him - and said, "Guy to talk guy." He grinned at Ryoga and said, "Don't get me wrong; love the girls, love to talk with them, especially Willow with her new bi view of things, but . . . she's still a girl. They just don't quite think and talk the way we do. Giles is . . . well, Giles. Old for one thing - okay, not old, but, adult, you know? Is more like a father than a friend."

"What about the werewolf?" Ryoga asked him casually as they steadily walked onward, both keeping eyes out for water action.

"Ah, Oz," Xander said, nodding steadily. "Oz isn't much of a conversationalist. I'm pretty sure I can talk to him when I need some real important, emergency guy advice or something, but he's Mister Cool Noncommital One Word Answer Guy. It just wouldn't be the same. With you I can talk, relaxedly, one on one, about lots of stuff. I'm already not in the mood for when you leave."

"I won't leave at least until after you've mastered the Bakusai Tenketsu," Ryoga told him, almost solemnly. "Which surprises me," he continued thoughtfully, "I would never do this for that bastard Ranma. One of these days I will beat that curd into the ground, mark my words."

"You do realize I consider him a friend, right?" Xander asked a little concerned, but not much. Ryoga may seem to have a deep hatred for his friend, but there was something about it that didn't quite ring fully serious.

"That is not your fault. It's all that duplicitous, perverted, sickening Ranma's fault. I will make him pay for that," Ryoga answered him, swinging his heavy umbrella about at an imaginary foe; one Saotome Ranma. Ryoga's face was crunched up in a grimace, his teeth clenched together. Xander couldn't help but smirk; he looked kind of good that way.

-----

It was a week later, and early morning Lexa groaned as she awoke. She blinked her eyes and looked around her darkened room. The only light was a small strip where her bedroom door wasn't quite closed and the sunlight was entering, and the numbers from the digital alarm clock. The clock was playing the radio to wake her up. She stretched a bit, arms above her head, and yawned leisurely. She found a comfortable position and turned off the radio clock. "Hmm," she muttered. "Get out, or, get out, or . . . or."

She moved her hands to her chest, and gently massaged her breasts for a short while. Then she moved her hands slowly down her taught stomach, caressing herself everywhere. "Dang, I'm horny," she muttered, slipping both hands beneath her pink, lacy g-string. Deciding to draw things out she gently stroked the flesh of her outer lips and her stomach just above it. Smiling, she tickled her short triangular hairs, having trimmed them. Finally she gave herself what she was craving, gently stroking her clitoris with her right middle finger. She shivered and moaned, feeling pleasure move up her spine. She stretched her legs with a grunt as she felt her inner muscles contract with the pleasure. Making sure not to go too rough yet, she kept her ministration to her pleasure nub short and teasing, causing small flutters of pleasure the flow through a body. Moaning she couldn't take anymore, and slipped two fingers of her left hand inside, her inner walls gripping the welcome intrusion happily. "Yes," she muttered, moving her fingers in and out, making sure to stroke the upper flesh for extra stimulation. She grunted, pushing her fingers in and out in the copious amounts of slick juices that had accumulated there - and suddenly she stopped, eyes wide.

She sat up quickly, and blindly reached for the light button. Finding it easily the light turned on, and she held up her left hand, clear juices sliding down the two fingers she had had inside of her. She blinked and opened the fingers, a string of the thin slime stretching between them. The juice was all but see-through, and much slicker than usual. "Holy shit," she muttered and then grinned, "I'm ovulating. I'm ovulating - I'm fully functional!" She chuckled to herself, and then after a thought said, "Must be why I'm so horny." Then she shrugged and slid back under the covers, hands back down to her pleasure center.

-----

About an hour later Lexa reached school. She found Willow and Buffy soon after, walking next to each other and talking. The umbrella she had casually hanging over her shoulder she quickly pushed further back into her backpack so she had two free hands. "Hey, guys," Lexa said with a grin, rudely interrupting their conversation, pushing the two apart and pulling them along by hooking her arms around theirs. "Let's go to the library, I've got some news." Boys all around took in the girl in sunglasses, super tight leather pants that showed off ever curve of her legs and ass, and a pink top with a deep cleavage. Somehow, showing off her feminine attributes while she was ovulating for the first time, had seemed proper to Lexa. Not that she ever not showed off her feminine attributes, but still; ovulation seemed right to debut her leather pants.

"Lexa!" Buffy protested, but was swept along before she or Willow could put in anymore protests.

Soon after they reached the library, and Lexa called, "Giles!"

The British librarian and demon hunter came from his office; alone this time, and he said, "Uh, yes? Found signs of another apocalypse? Shall I get out the books?"

"Bigger!" Lexa answered getting amused looks from Willow and Buffy, and horrified look from Giles before he realized bigger might not mean worse.

Lexa looked around and muttered about Jenny and the others, but quickly dismissed it, this was more for his closest two friends alone. Propelling the two forward to take a seat at the table, while Giles went toward it as well, Lexa positioned herself with her hands on her sides, pushing one side out, finding a powerful, yet feminine and teasing stance. After a moment of letting Willow and Buffy look ever increasingly expectant at her, she said finally, "I'm ovulating!"

Buffy's face went wide with a smile, as did Willow's, who then said, "Really? You sure?"

Lexa's face fell into annoyance, and looking pointedly at the apprentice witch said, "No, Willow, I don't. How about I scoop out some of the evidence from within me, and let you with the big brain check it out, so I can be certain?"

As Willow blushed and Buffy giggled at the mental picture, while Giles had removed his glasses and furiously started to clean them. The Watcher decided to speak up, "Yes, I suppose . . . uhm . . . congratulating you on being fully female and 100 operational so to speak would be a good idea?"

"Yeah!" Buffy said, getting up and hugging her best friend, "This is great, Xan! Lexa? Whatever! Congratulations." Lexa hugged her back and a moment later a red whirl had attached herself to her as well.

"Congratulations, Xander," Willow said with a smile. Lexa chuckled and laughed a bit, before they finally broke away.

Lexa nodded, and said, "So, once ovulation is over, another twelve to sixteen days and I can look forward to cramps as my body gets rid of some excess blood, eh?"

"Don't forget some jolly PMS just before that!" Buffy said with a big grin, as Giles finally felt comfortable enough to put his glasses back on. "Did I just say 'jolly'?" Buffy suddenly asked with a frown. Willow and Lexa nodded. "Oh, god!" she said horrified. "I'm using Giles-speak! I've been spending too much time around him. Get me out of here!"

The two friends took Buffy and quickly led her out of the library. Giles said, "'Giles-speak' is good, proper, jolly English, and not the hotch-potch you hormonal teenagers turn it into. And you don't need to get away from me for that." The Scooby Gang had reached the doors to the library though, and exited. Giles sighed, "Bloody Americans."

-----

"Over a 150 different symptoms of PMS have been documented. They range from mental to physical, from mood swings to depressions, to back and joint aches. They differ from woman to woman, from cycle to cycle," Lexa read out loud from the computer screen. The three of them were alone in the computer room, and Willow had turned on the internet connection, looking things up on the menstruation and PMS to further prepare their friend for hell. "Jesus," Lexa said with wide eyes, "you women don't know how to make up your minds, do you?"

"It has nothing to do with minds," Willow protested to Lexa, looking at her, "well, unless the hormones give you mood swings, but . . . you know what I mean!" She trailed off and shrugged, Lexa'd find out soon enough.

"A hundred and fifty?" Buffy said a little amazed. "I knew PMS was bad, but it's even worse than I thought!" Willow and Lexa looked at her with annoyed looks. "I'm of the 'give me your best shot, and I'll deal with it, don't bother me with all the possibilities' type, okay? Only makes me worry, and worrying gives me lines, and stress, and stress gives me more symptoms, and . . ." Buffy looked at her two friends, who were looking at her with raised eyebrows. "I'll shut up now."

"Now we'll have to decide if you're a pad or tampon girl," Willow said a little enthusiastically. "Any preference?"

"I don't know," Lexa said thoughtfully, then added with a smile, "It's always good to put something in." It earned him two playful elbows, and she chuckled. "On the other hand, I don't know how much I'm looking forward to pulling it out."

"Why? Because you're afraid you'll put it back in, and then out and . . ." Buffy said, and trailed off as she earned her own elbow from Lexa. "Ow," she muttered, rubbing her upper arm, but grinning.

"Buffy," Willow said sternly, then blinked not quite knowing where she was going with this. Then nodded, and finished, "It's obvious you've been spending too much time with Lotion, Cordelia and Lexa; you're forbidden to speak with them again, so get out."

Lexa chuckled, while Buffy looked scornfully at Willow. "I can make a dirty joke, it's not a bad influence, it's just me," Buffy said with a pout.

"Only if you're sure," Willow said sternly, making Lexa giggle out loud.

Buffy turned to Lexa, and said, "Best is to try them both out. One day tampon, then a pad, and see which you like best for the third and more days."

"So what do you use?" Lexa asked the blonde.

"Tampon," Buffy answered, and Lexa looked to Willow.

Willow answered, "Pad. Don't like insertion all day. Wanna keep it for special circumstances, if you know what I mean."

"Oh, I know," Lexa replied with a big grin.

-----

"Here it comes!" Ryoga called and threw the rock forward.

It was the same day, late in the afternoon, and Lexa was once again tied to the tree. She was exhausted, and hurting, but not half as much as that first day. The rock on ropes came flying forward. Lexa grimaced - and then she saw it! She had thought she'd seen it earlier, even Ryoga's explanation how to see it, and had been wrong, but now . . . there was a surety to her vision. The light indentation, and her mind supplying the weak lines all intersecting that point. That was it! Her index fingers had reached enough strength, that along with the little chi, it should be able to penetrate the hard material - which was quite hard even at it's breaking point. With a scream of satisfaction and effort, she slammed her right index finger in the point, and she felt it crush inside. At the very same time, in an instant the rock cracked along the weak lines, and exploded spectacularly, pelting Lexa with many pieces, but she barely felt them.

"YES!" she screamed.

Ryoga smirked. He reset his yellow and black bandana, and said, "Let's see if you've finally understood, or if it's a fluke." Ryoga jumped down from the tree and went off looking for another boulder as Lexa nodded in agreement.

He returned a little later, tied it in, and sent it flying. Lexa simply grinned as she rammed her left index finger in the rock's breaking point this time, and it exploded a moment later. "Yes!" she called out, and removed her ropes. She grabbed the umbrella she had standing close by for emergencies and went down to the ground where Ryoga was waiting for her. "Thanks, man," Lexa - in a tight enough exercise outfit her covers were visible, said breathing a little heavy.

"You did good, I learned it faster, though," Ryoga said with a smile.

"Of course," Lexa said with a wry grin, rolling her eyes at him. She took her temporary sensei in for a bit, and then asked with a sweet smile, "So, Ryoga. Now that you finished teaching me; when do you leave? Do you have enough money saved up yet?"

"Just about," Ryoga answered, as they slowly walked through the forest toward the settled part of Sunnydale again. "And then I can finally kick that Ranma-bastard's ass!" Ryoga punched his hands forward in blinding blur. "Thanks for teaching me that, by the way," Ryoga said to Lexa who smiled.

"No problem, you teach me something, I returned the favor," Lexa said with a dazzling smile, looking at the guy. "Just don't kill Ranma, he isn't that bad, and he's my friend. A good asskicking won't hurt him though."

"Yes, yes," Ryoga said non-committally. "Why did you want to know?"

"Like I said, I like having you around," Lexa told him, smiling, then stopped. Ryoga stopped to, puzzled. She drew a deep breath, bringing in her courage, and then said, "In more ways than one."

"Huh?" Ryoga asked even more confused.

"Remember the card you got?" Lexa asked him nervously.

"Valentine? What _/is/_ that anyway?" Ryoga asked her, thinking things through, staying put.

Lexa looked down for a moment, then back up, and said, "It's this special day where everyone sends lovers, potential lovers, and the occasional very good friends a card, proclaiming their love - or friendship, sometimes anonymously."

Ryoga frowned, looking suspiciously at Lexa, and then said, "Exactly how did you know about the card?"

"I sent it," Lexa blurted out, watching Ryoga's eyes grow. "I'm attracted to you," Lexa confessed, wondering what his reaction was. At the moment it was nothing, just remaining in that wide-eyed look, and so Lexa decided to continue. "I've got a bit of a crush on you; you're hot, handsome, sexy, kinda like your attitude," Lexa said. There still was no reaction apart from blinking, and deciding to take her chance, Lexa took a step forward, and gently placed a quick, but loving kiss on Ryoga's lips. She took a step back, and opened her eyes again.

For only a moment there was no reaction apart from greater shock on Ryoga's face. Then, staggering back, Ryoga screamed, "AAAAH! You pervert! You're a guy! YOU KISSED ME! AAAARGGH!" Then he ran into some random direction, screaming more.

Lexa's heart broke, and looked down. "Okay . . . that didn't go so well," Lexa muttered to herself, feeling hollow. After a bit, she turned around and ran the way Ryoga went. "Ryoga! Ryoga!" she screamed, trying to catch up, but after a minute she gave up. She walked defeated onward for a little while, before turning toward Sunnydale.

-----

Lexa knocked on Willow's bedroom door, which promptly opened. "Lexa!" she said with a little surprise. Willow was in a tight pair of jeans and a skimpy top which normally would have Lexa's blood boiling, but not today.

"Your mom let me in," Lexa said weakly, forcing a smile. It was testament to her having mastered the technique, that Willow wasn't all fussing over any wounds; they were now minor instead of major.

"Xan! What's wrong?" Willow called instantly, pulling Lexa inside, not once failing to see her best friend in a funk, even if he was a girl. She closed the door behind her, and pulled him a little further into the room. The room was pinkish hued, with whitish rooms. Right from the door was Willow's bed, with her head side against the wall of the room. Beyond her bed was a wall closet with her clothes, which was open at the moment. The closet was clearly divided in two; one side with her newer sexier clothes, some outrageously sexy, while the other side was her old clothes - which now did duty as bad-day clothes, as well as clothes to wear around the house doing stuff that would get her dirty. Willow maneuvered toward the bed, but still facing Lexa.

Still in her workout clothes, Lexa hesitated for a moment, and then said, "I need some girl talk, Will." Willow nodded immediately, and Lexa continued uncertain, "It's about something you're probably not going to like." She looked pointedly in Willow's eyes with a vulnerable look.

"Of course," Willow said with a smile. Raising her right hand, she said with a smile, "Friend mode to full, lover mode off."

Lexa smiled brightly and let herself be pulled to the bed. Willow sat down on it, and got Lexa to sit as well. The redheaded girl folded her legs sideways underneath her. Smiling reassuringly, she gestured for Lexa to begin. "I don't know if you've noticed, Willow, but . . ." Lexa paused to take a steadying breath, and finished, "I got a crush on Ryoga." Lexa saw the flicker of disappointment and dread in Willow's eyes, but she quickly pushed that away. Lexa realized he was such a lucky guy to have a friend like hers. It was amazing she was still there for her even if all this was going on. She was blessed - she needed to come up with a good reward.

"So, you need girl talk because you don't know how to proceed . . . or because something bad happened?" Willow asked Lexa friendly, smiling reassuringly to her.

"Something bad happened," Lex answered and looked down, gaining a hug from Willow that made her feel better.

"Go on," Willow said.

"Okay, so today I decided to make it known, to him I mean," Lexa explained with a pained look. "He was rather shocked, and I decided to give him a kiss; which wasn't such a good idea. He kinda went nuts. Screaming I was a perverted guy and ran off."

"Oh, Xan," Willow said and quickly hugging Lexa again, more fiercely this time. "He's a bastard. He's evil. He shouldn't have treated you like that."

"Will," Lexa said with a light chuckle, "just because I've got a crush on someone, doesn't mean they have to fall drop-dead in love with me."

Willow smiled, happy that Lexa at least could see the humor in things still. She told her, "First, it's a best friend's duty to her girl friend to vilify the guy. Second, it got you to smile, didn't it?" Lexa nodded, hugging Willow back. "And finally, I'm right. He could have said he wasn't interested, that he didn't swung that way, or considered a guy turning in a girl too weird for him; but calling you a pervert is just wrong. Bisexuality and homosexuality isn't even unnatural, happens with many animals as well, social ones predominantly, especially when the ratio from male to female is very uneven." Lexa looked down at Willow. "Big brain here."

"Okay, I guess you're right," Lexa muttered.

"You guess?" Willow said, breaking the hug and leaning back with offence. "Have you forgotten who you're talking to? That guy memory of yours got scrambled by the curse? Or did the mob drug it out of you to make you more complacent?"

"You're absolutely right as usual, Willow," Lexa stated with a smile and solid conviction.

"That's better," Willow replied with a satisfied nod.

"I knew I should never have done it. Must be the ovulation hormones," Lexa said a little sullenly.

"Just how much?" Willow asked him, then lowered her eyes.

Lexa looked at her, thinking of how to answer that. Finally she decided to say, "Enough."

Willow nodded. For a moment they stayed sitting, just enjoying each other's familiar company. Then Lexa got up, and turned on her Xander illusion. He looked down at Willow and with his very own male voice, said, "I better go find Ryoga before he freezes to death on the north pole, and have a little talk with him."

"You're not going to kill him are you? 'Cause, yes he's prejudiced, but you can't kill him over it," Willow asked a little uncertain.

"Not that kind of little talk, Willow," Xander said, giving her a smile, then with a heartfelt 'see you tomorrow' he was out the door.

-----

"RYOGA!" Xander yelled as he sped through the forest. Where could he be? He couldn't have gotten far; with his sense of direction he was probably walking in circles. He slowed down and checked the ground. Soon he found a set of confusing tracks; going in multiple directions. Ryoga! He'd have gone over the same section from different directions, going in every direction and circling back except the right one - ah, perhaps he did go in the right direction once in a while, but he'd have doubled back. "RYOGA!" Xander yelled out, while preparing a gamble on which trail to follow. Finally making a decision, he chose a random trail and ran off.

"RYOGA, WHERE ARE YOU!" Xander called out loud as he ran through the light forest. "Annoying halfwit," he muttered to himself without meaning it. As he ran, following the tracks, he kept yelling for the guy. Finally after a good while of searching he heard something decidedly not belonging to the forest. Turning toward the sound Xander ran onward, trees zipping by with his almost unnatural speed. It didn't take long before he found an obviously lost Ryoga.

"Ryoga!" Xander said, happy at finding his friend.

"Ack! Get away from me, you pervert!" Ryoga yelled at him in irritation.

Once again with the insult, and Xander's face grew a little darker. "I am _/not/_ a pervert! I'm bisexual!" Xander exclaimed finding himself analyzing his words as he said them. He blinked, and shrugged while saying, "Okay, I _/am/_ a pervert, but which guy isn't? Definitely nothing wrong, or disgusting about that, and especially not about me being bisexual for that matter!"

"You kissed me, you bastard!" Ryoga growled and jumped forward, making his umbrella come down in an arc. Xander bent sideways, making Ryoga miss. Immediately Ryoga pulled the umbrella right in an a devastating arc. Xander twisted himself around with a small jump, and blocked Ryoga's swipe at the wrist by putting his left foot against it. Bringing his left foot down and then his right foot out in a powerful kick he disarmed Ryoga from his deadly weapon. The umbrella flew a meter away before landing on the ground with a solid thud and making a deep indentation in the durt.

Ryoga kept his motion to his right up though, bringing his left fist along. With a solid sound and a blossoming of pain the fist landed on Xander's chin, making him stagger back. Instead of letting himself flying onward, he redirected his momentum downward, and flipped up and over his hands. His feet went up catching Ryoga with two kicks in his own chin.

Ryoga staggered as Xander rose back to his feet. "I am sorry for that!" Xander called half angry and half apologetic. "You're a raging heterosexual, and I should have checked first. But I thought - I'm a girl, you're a heterosexual guy, perfect match. And I have hormones surging too, which didn't- . . ."

"RAAH!" Xander was for too late to stop the devastating punch that landed square on Lexa's chin underneath his illusion. He/she was launched off her feet, and flew back several meters till she landed painfully against a tree - but found she could get up relatively easy. That rock training had seriously helped.

"I'll never, ever do it again, okay?" Xander groaned from his downed position. Ryoga stood over him, breathing heavily and still grimacing with anger, but rapidly deflating. "And I am _/not/_ bad or disgusting for being bisexual," Xander felt the need to growl out, looking at the boy in green pants and yellow shirt. "If you say or imply that again I will seriously hurt you."

"It's unnatural," Ryoga hissed.

"Nope, it isn't," Xander said, unable to keep a smile of his face as he thought, -Thank you, Willow.- He continued, "Happens in lots of animals as well; especially when the male to female ratio is uneven. It's genes and hormones, Ryoga, not a degenerative choice." Ryoga looked suspiciously at him. "This comes straight from the smartest person in Sunnydale, if not the world," Xander added to convince him.

"You should _/not/_ have kissed me, you asshole," Ryoga hissed, making a sharp gesture with his right hand, pointing at Xander.

Xander sighed deeply and looked up apologetically, telling his friend, "I know. I'm sorry. I should have waited, I should have gotten to know you better first." Xander sighed again, and said, "Can we still be friends? I'm still the same old sparring partner. I'll tug whatever feelings I've got deep away; shouldn't be a problem with the other ones-"

"Don't mention any feelings! You don't have any feelings toward me! Nothing what so ever!" Ryoga called out loud in desperation, shaking his head furiously.

"What feelings?" Xander asked with a smile, then held out his hand. "Friends?"

Ryoga grumbled but took his hand and pulled him up. "Fine, friends it is, but nothing more, nothing, you understand?"

"Nothing," Xander replied solemnly, and Ryoga nodded. He turned around and started walking.

Xander grabbed him by the arm and pulled him around. "Sunnydale is this way," Xander said and pulled him along.

-----

Almost two weeks later

Lexa groaned as she walked onto the school grounds. The cramp that pulled through her abdomen was most annoying. She sniffed air in deeply, ignoring it. "Hey guys," she said, wearing a pair of jeans and a white blouse. She still looked sexy, but for Lexa's standards it was downright drab.

The entire Scooby Gang stood under the tree waiting for her. It was one thing Lexa didn't like about her apartment - it was quite far enough away from school she invariably arrived last. She had liked being one of the first. "Hey, Lexa," Buffy greeted with a smile, her Slayer hearing having picked up Lexa's groan. "So . . . PMS huh?"

"It seems that way," Lexa answered dryly, looking a little annoyed at Buffy, who just grinned more widely. "Don't worry, Buffy, nothing debilitating."

"Good," Lotion said happily, her form-hugging Amazonian dress showing off what she had, "I don't want my future husband in horrible pains." She then turned her head and glared at Buffy, who had the wit the gulp slightly nervously. Willow and Lexa grinned at that, making Buffy pout.

Cordelia was finished taking Lexa in, and started, "Well, isn't that-"

Oz who had one arm around her waist gave her a squeeze, interrupting her. She looked down, and while almost imperceptibly shaking his head a bit, he said calmly, "What does she do when you snipe at her?"

Cordelia blinked while everyone looked interested at the exchange. "She snipes back of course!" Cordelia stated haughtily.

Oz nodded and raising his free hand at Lexa said, "PMS."

Cordelia frowned, took a look at Lexa. Her eyes widened and as she took a step back, she said, "Oh. Thank you."

"No prob," Oz said, tightening the single arm around Cordelia's waist a bit, into a supportive, almost protective, hug.

Cordelia then said, "Well, you're looking great, Lexa. Even in more casual clothes."

Lexa looked wryly at Cordelia while the others tried to cover their chuckles. Cordelia glared them into silence. Lexa sighed and turned toward the school building, taking the lead. The others followed and Willow said, "Well, Cordelia is right Lexa, you look delectable as usual." Willow gave Lexa a smile as she turned her head to look at the witch, who was looking delectable as well in short red dress with a white t-shirt under it.

"So do you," Lexa returned, with a smile.

Buffy's face had steadily grown a bigger and bigger grin, till it reached the status of evil. "So, you feeling irritable yet?" she asked, making Lexa turned half-way around to look at the blonde. Buffy quickly moved forward to be on Lexa's left, and said, "Just cataloging which of over the 150 symptoms you have this time around, Xan. Might help later."

"No," Lexa said with a sigh, and said, "and you can count on this; no matter the hormones, I'll never become 'irritable'. I'll be perfectly nice all the way."

"Are you sure?" Buffy asked him with a frown. "'Cause I know of few techniques to keep the killing instincts under control. Could help too."

"No, I'll be just fine, no irritability here," Lexa answered again.

"Well, just in case," Buffy said looking down, "You know counting sheep? While one of my faves is counting strangling men. I imagine strangling a guy till he's dead, count the corpse, and then go to number two."

They reached the entrance, as they stepped inside the highschool Lexa turned her head and looked at Buffy with a weird expression. Behind them Oz stiffened a bit at Buffy's casual mentioning of strangling guys. Cordelia grinned down at him and squeezed him reassuringly. Lotion took over, "Me, I just beat the crap out of any Amazon stupid enough to want to spar with me. It's very therapeutic. Sadly, there are not many people here who would spar with me, or are stupid enough to do it when I'm . . . irritable."

Lexa sighed. "So Willow, what's your technique?" Buffy asked with a smirk, partly genuinely interested.

"Oh, well, uh . . ." Willow looked down, her old shy self seeming to return for a moment. She looked up and said, "Imagining ripping off a guy's balls and making him eat them."

A paled Oz gave a grunt, and then said, "I don't think it's healthy for a guy to be listening to this." The girls except Lexa turned their heads around a smirked at him.

"So what about you, Cordelia?" Buffy asked.

"Shopping," Cordelia answered immediately.

"Duh," Buffy said immediately, rolling her eyes exaggeratingly, "I mean when you can't go shopping, when you're in school or in class."

Oz looked half dreading up at Cordelia, and she answered with an evil grin, "Tearing into fashion suicide cases."

Willow's eyes widened and then turned back Cordelia with an angry look, "Is _/that/_ why you've been calling me names all these years? You were PMSing?"

"Not just," Cordelia said, folding her arms across her ample chest, "I've hacked into you when I wasn't on occasion, but putting a fashion victim in front of me when it's that time of the month, is like waving a red cloth in front of a bull."

Willow let out a dangerous high pitch growl, and said, "I think I'll start to return the favor when it's that time of the month for me. Some payback is in order."

Cordelia just looked annoyed at the redhead. Buffy took up the thread again, asking Lexa, "Are you certain you don't feel any irritability?"

"No," Lexa answered.

"You sure?" Buffy asked again, in an annoying fashion. "'Cause seriously, we've got more where this came from."

Lexa sighed a bit, and said with a slightly annoyed tone, "I'm not irritable, Buffy."

"Okay then. But you better be _/real/_ certain, because we can't help you when we're in class," Buffy said with an overly sweet voice.

"Buffy!" Lexa exclaimed, finally fed up, stopping, and making everyone follow suit. "I am _/not/_ irritable! Get that through to your blonde head! _/Not/_ irritable! NOT! I am perfectly nice, and there is not a singe of irritability. Now quit with it, or I'm going to use this fist to show you just how not irritable I am!" Lexa held her right fist up for Buffy to see, and the blonde just looked at her with raised eyebrows. The others were standing there, looking at her with wide eyes as well. A slight smile crept up Buffy's face as Lexa turned to look at all of them looking at her. Realizing what she did, and why they all were looking at her, she rolled her eyes, and said, "Oh, please! If I were a guy, I would have done the same thing." She then turned back facing forward, and marched off.

Buffy giggled. "That was mean, Buffy," Lotion pointed out.

Buffy rolled her eyes at the sexy Amazon, and said, "Xander would never say that to me; he might bet pissed, but he'd find a creative way to pay me back."

"Doesn't matter," Lotion said and demonstratively turned her back on Buffy and stalked off.

"Perhaps not mean, Buffy, but it was low," Willow pointed out, and turned in the direction of her locker.

"Oh, come on, it was funny," Buffy said with a grin.

"Yep," Oz concurred.

Cordelia casually finished his thought, just as brief as her boyfriend, "Still low." Then they also walked off, and Buffy threw up her arms in defeat.

-----

A little later Buffy found Lexa in the gym. She was in her own clothes and doing Tai Chi exercises. The class that had gym and the teacher were still in the dressing rooms, so apart from the two of them, the gym was empty. Buffy walked over to Lexa, and asked, "What are you doing?"

"Rooting my chi," Lexa answered her.

"I _/know/_ that, I'm not blind," Buffy returned somewhat miffed.

Lexa took the time to turn her eyes to the Slayer, and then asked, "Then why are you asking?"

Buffy took a deep steadying breath, and letting it out she said, "I meant, why are you doing that?"

"To calm down, take control of my body, counteract the effect of hormones," Lexa answered calmly, lowering herself, putting a foot, and then gently moving her hands outward. "I'll be damned if I'm going to let some hormones control me, and I'm not going to whine either."

Buffy smiled friendly, "Is that what you call what we do?" Odd, Buffy thought, how Lexa/Xander could switch from rather feminine ways of speech to very masculine speech patterns like that. Lexa just moved her eyes toward her. "School is starting, you know," Buffy said with a smile. "Is that really going to work?" This time Lexa just looked oddly at her. "Okay, okay, I can tap my chi, I can feel it. But turning off PMS?"

Lexa rolled her eyes, and said, "I'm not turning it off, I'm pushing it down, bringing my normal response and chi patterns to the fore."

Buffy blinked several times, and then said, "I didn't think you could do that."

"Well, you can," Lexa said, smiling. She took a final deep breath and turned to Buffy. "Let's go, class was starting you said, right?" Buffy's eyebrows rose, and then nodded.

-----

Later at lunch they were sitting at a table in the canteen. "You better?" Willow asked her best friend. "Or still?"

Lexa shrugged, smiled and said, "Yeah, I'm fine. An occasional cramp but nothing that really hurts."

"And the . . .?" it was Cordelia who asked it, leaving the final word of the question out for fear of making Lexa explode again, and this time at her.

"I'm not irritable, I'm just fine," she answered, smiling, before taking a bite out of her sandwich. As everyone else ate from their food, Lexa finished her bite and swallowed it. Scowling at Buffy she said, "Unless you're determined to get me pissed off, you'll have to do enough to get me pissed off when I'm not . . . you know."

Lexa gobbled down the sandwiches she had brought with her quickly and easily, while the others took their time a little more. She sat up and looked around, still feeling hungrily. So she got up and joined the line at to the school food. A little later she returned with a plate full of many things, as well as a beaker of fruit yoghurt. She smiled and started to shovel in the food with great gusto. Her friends watched and smirks crept up their faces. "What?"

Lotion smiled friendly at him, and said, "I think we found another symptom?"

Lexa looked around confused, noticing the food finally. "I'm hungry," she complained.

Willow grinned, and pointed out the slop that past for the school's cafeteria food. "Lexa, you're eating school slop as if it were ice cream," she said.

Lexa looked from the food to Willow and back. She sighed, and grumbled, "Do I point out every idiosyncracy I notice in you guys on regular intervals of four weeks? No? Well, then don't do it with me!"

"I thought you weren't irrita-" Buffy started with a smile. She stopped as Lexa's dangerous eyes suddenly flashed at her, and her smile faltered, making her swallow. She got the message, 'You better not be starting again,' loud and clear. "Never mind," she said quickly, sitting further back on the chair.

Lexa continued feasting on the slop in demonstrative silence.

-----

The Scooby Gang including Giles, Jenny and Joyce were sitting at Xander's dining table, and Lexa came out of the bathroom. "This is actually more annoying than the PMS," she muttered seeing her friends sitting at the dining table. The table was set with a feast that she had prepared for them. They were eating, and talking amongst each other, but Buffy had looked over and smirked at her.

"Hey, there's the tampon," Buffy was the one to point out. Oz and Giles sitting across from each other tried to stay as inconspicuous as possible.

"Tried them, didn't like it, remember? I'm with Willow on that one," Lexa muttered reaching her chair and sitting back down. "Especially when it stimulates places at inappropriate times."

Oz and Giles' eyes widened, sitting completely still and looking at each other, neither knowing if Lexa meant what they thought she meant. There were several agreeing and disagreeing murmurs. Cordelia said out loud, "All I know is, I can't live without my tampons."

"Tampons are for wimps," Lotion commented from her seat, and the two were about to start a big fight.

"How about we get back to dinner?" Giles decided to interrupt with as guarded a polite smile he could manage. "This doesn't seem an appropriate subject at this time," Giles finished. He just knew what Oz was thinking: the exact same thing he was thinking: the numbers are not in our favor and why did Xander/Lexa have to invite is here when he was all girl to make it worse? Can we get out of here?

"I agree," Oz added in.

"Are the men a little uncomfortable?" Willow asked with a smirk.

Jenny cut in, half in defense of her boyfriend, half because she agreed, "I think Giles' is right. Plenty of places and times to talk about the monthly business, but not during dinner."

"Yeah," Lexa chimed in with a happy smile, finishing cutting off a piece of her stake. Holding it up, she said, "Food now, happy times, no monthly business - so decrees the man of the house."

There was some laughter, masking two relieved sighs starting a few moments after the laughter started. "This is a nice place, Xander, and you're a great cook," Joyce commented from her place at the head of the table opposite Lexa's position. "If it were possible, I'd have you cook for me and Buffy every night."

"Please, don't, Xan," Buffy groaned, after swallowing down her third helping of the lean meat and delicious - but undoubtedly fattening - sauce, along with cauliflower in delicious - and once again fattening - cream sauce, with baked potatoes with some delicious - you get the idea - sauce. "I'll be too fat to stand up in no time." She actually felt guilty for stuffing herself the way she had been, but it was just too delicious not to get a second and then third helping. Her third helping was almost gone.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Joyce commented, considering it a slight to her cooking.

Buffy had been eyeing what was left and how many people were eyeing it as well, calculating the odds at grabbing one more helping before anyone else could. She had Slayer speed; but Lotion would be just as fast. Her thinking like that about a fourth helping of food, and thinking made her feel guilty.

"Well?" Joyce repeated with a stinging tone reserved only for her daughter, who's head jerked to regard her mother - a very well trained monkey indeed.

"Hmm?" Buffy said, while she rationalized that since she was the Slayer, had a Slayer's metabolism, and she needed the energy to dust vampires for the good of mankind, she could have a fourth helping without getting fat or needing to feel selfish. Of course, that rationalization made a new wave of guilt sweep through her.

"Do you think my cooking is bad?" Joyce clarified with narrowed eyes, while everyone else became a little more nervous. An angry Joyce was scary to hear.

"What? No! Why?" Buffy said half-panicked, not wanting her mother's ire directed at her.

"Why do you think you're going to eat so much more of Xander's cooking you'll get fat?" Joyce said, directed at her.

"No, no, uh . . ." Buffy said, twitching like a fish on a hook, or a daughter in her mother's sights.

"It's just that Xander cooks so much more fattening, Mrs. Summers," Willow said politely, helping out her best friend. "Just one helping of his food, is like three helpings of yours. You being woman like Buffy, understand the need for a girl's careful diet. I myself am planning to fast for a day after this feast."

Giles who finished swallowing down some delicious potatoes, decided to say, "Well, Buffy being the Slayer- OW!" Willow's smile never once wavered as Joyce looked suspiciously over to the watcher and the witch who were sitting next to each other. Giles was reaching under the table, making rubbing motions.

"That must be what Buffy meant," Lexa chimed in with a smirk, "because I've tasted you're cooking Joyce, and it's every bit as good as mine, if not better."

"Yeah, that's exactly what I meant," Buffy quickly said with a smile at her mother, making a mental note to remember she owed Willow and Xander big time. Quickly the Slayer sent a glare to Lotion and Cordelia to make sure they wouldn't get the idea to let their blabber mouths loose. She didn't need to; Cordelia didn't seem interested in tangling with the elder Summers, and Lotion was too engrossed into stuffing herself with Lexa's delicious cooking . . . and Buffy's fourth helping. When Buffy noticed that, her glare toward the Amazon increased a thousand fold.

Buffy got a nudge from Lexa, and she said, "There's still dessert." Buffy's face lit back up.

"So, everything all right?" Joyce decided to ask. Buffy had reassured her time and time again nothing big was on the horizon, but she had the sneaking suspicion her daughter would lie to her so she wouldn't get worried. "On the supernatural end, I mean?"

"Yes, no more than the usual on top of the Hellmouth," Giles said, a slight edge of wryness in his voice.

"Everything seems to be fine, which tells me we should be more vigilant," Lexa added, frowning at her observation.

Jenny nodded, and said, "It would be nice if Amy joined us; another magic user to fight the demons is never a luxury, especially not on the Hellmouth. I have forced her to learn with me and Willow, more to instill some morality and knowledge of consequences in her than anything else; she doesn't want to be anywhere near the actual fighting though. Says she's no hero, and just wants to live her life."

"Which is her good right," Cordelia added a little testily, "an idea I had, before the weird stuff kept sucking me back in."

"And you wanted to impress one of the heroes," Willow pointed out with her fork aiming at Cordelia. The cheerleader glared at Willow for having the audacity to convey Cordelia might be here out of her own volition.

"Destroying vampires is fun, good training, sadly their numbers are down lately though," Lotion told Joyce with a smile. "Things are quiet."

-----

On the way back, Joyce drove Willow home. Buffy was sitting in the passenger seat, with the redhead in the middle of the backseat. Willow was speaking with a large eyes, "Danish pudding: vanilla pudding on red berry sauce with raisins and currants in it, and separate whipped cream for those who want it. How does she come with this stuff? That was sooooo tasty! Yummy, yummy, delicious! I still can't quite believe it."

"Oh, yeah, I'm about to explode," Buffy said with a groan, feeling her belly. "I'm going to regret going to Xander's birthday party in the morning."

Joyce nodded, and said, "Like I said, I wouldn't mind him cooking for me every day. Doubt it'll be feast every time, but if I don't have to cook, hmm."

"I kinda feel guilty," Buffy took over with a pout. "I gave him, her - ah! - a nice gift; but that feast was worthy of a house."

"With his children from your womb," Willow said dreamily, making Buffy and Joyce turn around to look at her. "Hey! I'm in love, sue me! And road!" Joyce quickly turned around and steered the car back to a nice straight line.

"Pretty sad Ryoga had left before Lexa's birthday party, they got along pretty good," Buffy thought out loud once the car was on the straight and narrow again.

"Yeah, she had a pretty big crush on him too. Happy he didn't want her, what a dumbass really," Willow commented off hand; the whole thing having past and gone.

"WHAT?" Buffy exclaimed in shock.

-----

"Ah!" Xander Harris, stepped with an overly comment of relief past Buffy into her house. "Male once more, thank god!" he added and walked onward to the living room where Willow and Lotion were already waiting. As Lotion had been present during the initial idea, she had insisted to be part of the 'debriefing' as Xander's inner soldier had dubbed this little get together. He went to his seat on the couch next to Willow and sat down.

"Being a girl is that bad?" Willow asked him both perturbed and curious as Buffy sat down next to Lotion across from Xander on the couch with the window.

Joyce joined them, sitting down in the chair, while Xander answered, "No, girl is pretty great. I've just gotten used to switching genders. I can barely grasp how I got through the first seventeen years of my life. It's just so much fun to be able to switch between them. Being stuck in one almost feels unnatural to me. Seriously, you guys should call up the Jusenkyo guide and ask if there is a cursed spring of the drowned boy, and if so, book a flight."

"EW? Being a guy? No think you!" Buffy exclaimed horrified at the thought. "Belching, and having a . . . ew." Joyce looked amused at her daughter, while Willow nodded slowly. Apparently she agreed, but not quite as overly horrified by it as Buffy was.

"Hey, you wouldn't have a period and PMS ever again without you wanting to. Every time you switch to male, the cycle gets reset," Xander told here with a grin.

Buffy's eyes suddenly widened, and then said, "Nah, isn't worth it."

"I agree; I'm too scared I turn in an Amazon male wimp," Lotion added with a grim expression. "No gender changes for me."

"Suit yourselves, your loss," Xander said with a shrug.

Joyce decided to pull the conversation to what it was supposed to be about, "So, Xander, what did you think of your period itself."

Xander nodded, and said, "Annoying, glad I don't have to go through it."

Buffy smirked at Xander, while Willow didn't quite know what to feel. Xander seemed okay, but it was her glamour idea that forced him to have to go through the annoying. "Told ya," Buffy spoke, smiling cheekily.

"Don't get me wrong, Buffy," Xander answered, sitting more forward to regard her better, "it's annoying alright, it's worse than some men think it is; but it most certainly isn't as bad as some of you make it out to be." It was Joyce's time to nodded with a sneaky smile of her own, while Buffy looked at him with a surprised pout. Xander continued, "You can definitely control your reactions, reason yourself through a hormone surge, especially now that I've taught you the Tai Chi stuff. Doing that can put you in control even more. Don't think I'm going to take PMS as an excuse anymore; unless I was being really obnoxious like you were."

"I was just kidding," Buffy repeated her defense another time, as she started to realize what it mean. "Ah, dang, I knew I shouldn't have you do it, after mom said . . ." Buffy deflated.

Willow grinned, and said, "Xan, is that all?"

"I kinda like the ovulation part," Xander said with a smile. "Hearing and eyesight are better, and the- uh . . . well . . ."

Joyce tried to stifle a laugh, but failed, making it come out like a choke. "Sorry," she said with a smirk, "You handled _/all/_ of the hormones very well, I see."

"Ah, mom," Buffy complained.

"Yes, he did. I expected nothing less from my future husband; he has triumphed once again!" Lotion exclaimed happily, making two sets of yes look at her with mirth, and two sets of eyes glare at her.

"So? Xander Harris is back again to woo the girls, eh?" Joyce asked Xander with a naughty smile that Buffy blanch at her mother in shock.

"What can I say?" Xander answered with a grin. "I'm irresistible; which considering whose genes I carry, is a miracle." Xander frowned as he thought it over, while Willow snickered.

"You are full of yourself, Xan," Buffy told him, half smiling.

"The only reason why I don't have a horde of Sunnydale High girls after me, is because a certain Amazon kicked some of their asses and threatened to do the same with the rest; and I don't have four after me, because I dumped one," Xander told Buffy with a grin.

Buffy opened her mouth to come up with a reply, but couldn't, making Lotion and Willow laugh. "Face it, pig-nosed girl, my future husband is full of himself, but not _/too/_ full of himself." Buffy folded her arms across her chest, and sat there annoyed, steaming and stewing, while three women laughed, and one guy smirked.

-----

The mayor of Sunnydale, one Richard Wilkins the third, looked out the window of his office. Smiling as he took in his quaint little town, that wasn't quite so little. "Allan, we're doing a good job here," he said proudly, "There's hardly any littering, everyone has water and heat, educational system is the best in the state, plenty of parking space, a lovely park and old buildings. Why, if it weren't for the death toll, this would the best place in the country, if not the world!" He turned around and grinned at his deputy mayor that was standing in front of his desk, and said, "Shucks, even with the death toll we might be the best in the country, most assuredly in the state!"

"Of course, sir," the timid, small man in a suit said, "we have a problem though."

"We could do with some better facilities for the kids though," Wilkins went on happily as he walked to his chair, "a few fields to play ball games on, perhaps with some playgrounds adjacent to them. The kids are important Allan, they are our future, never forget that."

"Of course not, sir," Allan answered the mayor.

The mayor sat down in his chair, and said, "Now, Allan, what dreadful business are you reporting this time?"

"You were right about the magic, sir," Allan told him and forced himself to take a deep breath. "It seems that the vampire Dalton is preparing something big, and he's doing it very quietly: wards, magical and otherwise, glamours. He's keeping his minions on a tight lease; probably so they don't tip of the Slayer and her friends on what he's doing. He's actually using his brain, sir, and he seems to have a powerful one. He was one of Spike's crew before he and his companions were destroyed."

"Well, now, that's quite enterprising of the good fellow," Wilkins said with amicable smile. "Any idea what he's planning?"

"Ah, yes, sir, uhm . . ." Allan stopped nervously.

Wilkins smile grew reassuring, and said, "Come on, Allan, spill it out. I don't kill the messenger . . . not usually at least." Allan's face blanched, and Wilkins laughed out loud. "Just kidding, Allan, out with it."

"Okay, we sent someone to infiltrate the Dalton's little circle, and he reported 'Ascension,'" Allan finished, and gulped.

Richard's smile never wavered, but the laughter in his eyes turned to ice cold, and he said, "Well, now, that is mighty inconsiderate of him. You'd think one would ask if it's your turn; it's only common courtesy."

"I know, sir, the world isn't as it used to be," Allan agreed with the mayor.

"Damn right, it isn't," the mayor said, placing a light tap on the desk with his fist. "Oh, well, we'll just have to deal with it somehow. Any ideas?"

"I was thinking we let the Slayer and her friends deal with it again, sir. They are quite effective after all, sir," Allan pointed out.

"Indeed they are, aren't they?" Mayor Wilkins said with a smile. "Like I said, Allan, the children are the future. And I must say, relocating that arm to where we knew their little group had hired a warehouse for the night, was a brilliant idea on your part."

"Thank you, sir, sending those portents to the second Slayer and her watcher was inspiring, though," Allan returned, more calmer now that the bad news was out, and all was well.

"It was, wasn't it?" Wilkins said with a smile. "I must put the blame for the Master fiasco squarely at my own two feet, I underestimated him and his minions digging him out so soon. Now that I think about it; getting the second Slayer back into the mix, might not be such a bad idea."

"Shall I buy the same ingredients as last time, sir?" Allan asked him.

Wilkins nodded with a smile, and said, "Yes, Allan, please do. Try to find an alternative for frog legs, though. The stains are very difficult to remove."

"I will try, which makes us come to a final thing," Allan told the mayor, as he pulled a large yellow envelope from his jacket.

"And what might that be, Allan?" the mayor asked amicably as Allan placed the envelope on his desk.

"An artifact has been unearthed by the Sunnydale University archeology division," Allan answered him simply. "It's a large box with some writing on it. Ancient writing, since you are better with the ancient languages, I thought you might want to take a look at it."

"Yes, that would be a good idea, Allan. If that is all, you can go so I can take a look at this," the mayor told him, opening the envelope.

"Yes, sir," Allan said and left the office.

To Be Continued . . .


	28. part 28

-----28-----

The rectangular rock formation stood in the middle of the room. Several people around it were cleaning it with delicate brushes. Tables with papers and the occasional computer showed this was a university lab. Some parts of the rock formation were straight, except for the small symbols carved into it.

"Uh, hello," a British voice called.

One portly man in university professor clothes turned and asked, "Rupert Giles?"

"Ah, yes," Giles answered as he passed the door frame. The portly man put his tools down on a table.

"Good day, I'm Doug Perren," the man said, walking over to Giles and guided him in. "Thanks for coming."

"Oh, not at all, I'm . . . flattered to be asked," Giles said, shaking the man's head walking toward the rock formation.

"How could we not?" Doug answered with a smile, "I called up Lou Tabor at the Washington Institute, and he said we had the foremost expert on obscure relics right here in Sunnydale."

"Oh," Giles said, smiling embarrassedly, "I . . . uh . . . he exaggerating a little. Ah, is this . . ."

"This is our baby," Doug answered with a proud smile, "Construction workers dug it up outside of town. Don't have a clue what it is. Any ideas?"

Giles touched the rock and took a better look at it, and said, "A few. None I'd care to share until I can verify." He then checked out the writing, and asked, "You, uh, have carbon dated this?"

Doug shrugged and said, "Results are due back tomorrow. I'll go on a limb and say 'old'."

"Yes, it-it does seem to predate any known settlement," Giles said, moving to the right and frowning at a groove. He looked to his right and found a jar with a scraper. "May I?"

"Sure, go right ahead," Doug answered friendly.

Giles picked up the jar, and scraped more rock not belong to the artifact away, and the groove becomes more clearer, straighter. He took the scraper back and tapped it clean in the bowl, and asked, "I assume you haven't tried to open it."

"Open it?" Doug asked surprised and leaved over, looking at the groove. "Well, I'll be damned, I thought it was solid rock. What do you think is in it?"

"I haven't got a clue," Giles answered looking up and down the tall rock.

"I guess we won't know until we open it," Doug answered with a slight green.

"Indeed," Giles answered, frowning as he went over the writing. "I was hoping though, you'd consider keeping it closed, until . . . uh . . . until I have been able to do some research; to give us an idea what's in it?"

"You don't like to be surprised?" Doug asked him with a smirk.

"Not as a rule, no," Giles answered taking a step back and taking in the almost two and a half meter tall monstrosity. "Can I take an imprint of the writing?"

"Okay, we'll wait, and go ahead," Doug answered Giles just a slight hint of disappointment in his voice. Giles went to the table to get some paper, then a pencil to strike it on the paper.

-----

"Uah, this makes no sense."

The statement was final, and filled with disgust. It rang through Buffy's room for all to hear. At the same time as stating it, Buffy slammed her piece of paper on her desk. Next to her sat Willow who quickly took the paper and said, "No, of course not, you just have to . . . oh, yeah, this doesn't make sense."

"I told you," Buffy said with a pout, "I'll never complete finals this way."

"Hey, but at least you know it doesn't make sense now, that's progress," Willow said enthusiastically, drawing a disgusted look from Buffy. Obviously saying Buffy was even stupider than she thought she was, or had been, was not a good boost.

The Slayer snorted, and said, "I can't believe we hat to learn this stuff. Once we graduate highschool what do we need Chemistry for? Or Physics, or . . . or even-"

Buffy was just about to continue; starting with 'English', when Xander spoke up, "Build bombs."

Buffy and Willow turned around to regard their friend with wide eyes. They had all but forgotten he was here; but there he lay, on the bed studying himself. He looked up, and said with a smile, "You can blow demons up with them . . . and if you combine Chemistry with Physics, you might be able to figure out a anti-vamp bullet. Means you can kill them without ever having to get near one."

Buffy and Willow regarded their smiling friend for a moment. "Okay, Chemistry," Buffy suddenly said, turning to her redhead friend, "come on, Will, focus here. Chemistry, and then physics, then the rest."

"Okay," Willow said, quickly turning back around to the task at hand, wanting to say thanks to Xander for getting Buffy to focus on learning, while at same time perturbed what the promise of violence could elicit in Buffy. Then again; easier and safer means to keep demons meant longer living Buffy, so perhaps it wasn't so surprising.

-----

"Nihau." Buffy, Xander and Willow, who had just arrived in school, turned around at the familiar call. Lotion joined them, and said, "School year is almost over. Is Future Husband looking forward to vacation."

As Willow and Buffy groaned, Xander answered, "Oh, yeah; nice trip to Japan. Booked and ready."

Willow and Buffy looked oddly at Lotion, as she openly with wide eyes checked Xander up an down. At first they thought she was openly ogling Xander, but then they saw her do the same to herself, looking back at her ass. Confused they decided to ignore it, and Willow asked her, "So, how is your finals studying going, Lotion? We've been crunching it hard yesterday. Will have to continue doing it tonight. Buffy still needs lots of help."

"Hey," Buffy whined a little.

"Oh, just fine, chemistry is easy," Lotion said with a smile.

"Of course," Buffy muttered in annoyance.

Xander smiled at Lotion, and asked her, "Can you make a bomb?"

"Sure, but I could do that before the chemistry; Amazon warrior training: once defeated great emperor Min's army with explosives," Lotion answered with a grin.

"I think I'm falling in love," Xander told the brunette with a smile.

"Hey! I can make bombs," Willow protested quickly, making Buffy give the studying Wicca a questioning, wry look. "I can make them bigger than her too."

"It's not the size that counts, but how you use them," Lotion answered sagely.

Buffy turned back to Willow to see if her redhead friend had a comeback. She hadn't, for she looked down and muttered something in obvious annoyance. "I like you," Xander answered with a little grin, making Lotion perk up a bit more.

"Okay, that's it - what are you doing?" Buffy suddenly asked, looking at Lotion, stopping the group's progress. The Amazon looked confused. "That's the third time in as many minutes you looked at Xander's body and then your own."

"Checking for scales and fins," Lotion answered, folding her arms across her chest, making it even more impressive than it already was.

"You were never anywhere near the steam showers!" Buffy wailed in disbelief and shock, making several of the other students look toward the group, speculating what she could possibly have meant.

"And who's fault is that?" Lotion answered in a huff, as the students turned away once more, the conversation to normal barely audible levels. "I can't believe it: who ever heard an all-male swim team? I could outswim anyone of them, even _/with/_ their dumb gene therapy. Besides, Xander was, and I was near him and the others. Could be contagious."

Buffy groaned, and said, "It's not contagious. Tell her, Willow." Buffy nudged Willow, prompting for an answer of the present brainiac. Said brainiac however, was zoned out a bit with a slight smile on her face. Inside her mind, Willow was replaying the scene: first Lotion came out in a drool-worthy bathing suit, and Lotion being drool worthy herself . . . Damn it was evil that her rival had to be so delectable. Of course, Xander in a Speedo afterwards, had positively made her, and she was pretty certain Buffy and Cordelia who had been watching the swim team training with her, cream her panties. The good-looking boys in Speedos before both of them, hadn't helped matters of course. As for bathing suits though, the only one Willow could think of that would look better in one than Lotion would be Lexa. Most definitely time for a trip to the beach . . . "Huh?" Willow said, throwing her head to her right and at Buffy, "Oh, no, not contagious." Willow felt herself go red, but the two battling shrews didn't seem to care. For a moment she wondered if defeating the couch together, made Lotion and Xander come closer, but quickly dismissed it. He seemed pretty interested in herself, lately, having demanded to go over to Buffy's studying for their 'three-way friendship' sakes.

"Better safe than sorry," Lotion said in response.

Buffy rolled her eyes, and said softly, "The fish monster you turn into, will rip out of its own skin. All changes underneath, looking at your skin won't help at all."

"Ah, good, there you are," a British voice sounded, and Giles caught up with them. "Come along now, quickly."

The four of them looked at each other, Buffy and Lotion's squabble forgotten, and they quickly followed. They soon entered their familiar headquarters: Sunnydale High library. As the four of them entered behind Giles, they found that Oz and Cordelia were already there. Jenny emerged from the office. "So what's the big emergency, Giles?" Cordelia said annoyed.

"Well, I found something disturbing," Giles said, walking to the corner of the table, while the others sat down. "Or rather, someone else found something disturbing and they asked for my expertise," Giles said with an imperious voice.

"Just when I was enjoying the calm," Buffy muttered dejectedly, but then put in a little effort to pay attention.

Giles cave her a look, and the Slayer placed her legs demonstratively on the table, but otherwise kept silent, waiting patiently. Giles sighed, and went to explain, "Yesterday, I was called by the archeology department of Sunnydale University; I was asked to take a look at something they found. Construction workers dug up a rectangular stone box. It was mostly covered with rock outcroppings, but a few sections were bare, and they contained inscriptions. I made prints. I have not yet had time to fully translate the texts; they are partially still obscured and I'm not well-versed in Akkadian-"

"Let me guess," Xander interrupted the watcher. "You want us to help with the research, and you have an idea?"

"Indeed," Giles said, and took off his glasses. He looked at his charges seriously, and said, "This is very important, although I don't think I have to remind you. My suspicion is Acathla; which means it would be prudent for some of you to research him as well, until we are certain that he is not it."

"Or we know everything about this Acathla," Oz pointed out calmly.

Giles nodded, "Indeed."

"Don't leave us in suspense, Giles, what _/do/_ you know of this Acathla that makes you suspect it?" Willow asked the watcher with eagerness for information.

Giles wiped his brow with the blouse on the back of his arm, and put his glasses back on, then said, "I know that Acathla was turned to stone by some great warrior, then imprisoned and buried. There was something about Acathla that made him extremely dangerous - Apocalypse dangerous. If someone would be to release him - make him alive once more . . . well, I don't think I need to paint you a picture."

"Hell fire, monsters, damnation, blood, guts, death," Lotion supplied.

Xander answered Giles with a grin, "That about sum it up, Giles?"

"Quite, let's get to work," Giles said with a grim look.

"Uh, why don't we just put it away again somewhere?" Buffy said, raising a finger. Everyone looked at her. "Well, it's been there for who knows how long, nobody bad on the Hellmouth, so why bother?"

"I like to be certain, and have a way to stop it, just in case it gets freed somehow after all," Giles spoke with a tone of finality, and Buffy groaned.

And so they went to work . . . actually they went to class, they went to work during breaks. Finally, later that day, Buffy was the one who hit pay dirt. "Aha! Acathla; that's him right?" Buffy called out loud, and they all turned to her as one. Quickly they went over, and Giles reached for the book. "Hey!" Buffy called in protest, and yanked the book to the side, making Giles miss. "You always do the big announcements, this time I find something, _/I/_ get to make the big announcement."

"Buffy," Giles said, and the Slayer stared him down. He sighed and took off his glassed to clean them, while giving her a go ahead gesture.

Buffy nodded in satisfaction and took the book back to her lap. She went to work at the text . . . saying nothing, deciphering the Latin with difficulty; with the ever returning researching the Scoobies had decided to take the old languages given on Sunnydale High, Latin, the standard, being one of them. Of course Buffy wasn't very proficient yet. After some silence, while everyone become more impatient by the second, Jenny spoke up, "Some of us could probably figure it out-" She was silenced by Buffy's angry glare.

"Hold your horses, I'm doing this," Buffy stated petulantly. Some more deciphering, while whispering among the others broke out, which slowly turned to murmuring. She glared at them again, and they attempted silence. Finally she said, "I got it, pay attention everyone." They did, and she got up, holding the book in one hand, trying to look officious - not surprisingly she failed miserably. "Acathla. Acathla was a demon brought forth to start Armageddon, to sow misery amongst mankind, yada, yada, yada." The others groaned at Buffy's editing. "Hey! Pay attention!" Buffy called out, and went back to the book. "It was given the power to create a dimensional vortex, and thusly suck . . ." Buffy blinked, looked closer, and said, "Ball? Suck balls? A demon that sucks balls? What's so great and terrifying-"

As Oz and Xander suppressed a shudder, Willow blushed, Jenny gave Giles a sympathetic look for more hardships than one, and the various other girls scowled at the blonde, Giles interrupted Buffy, correcting with annoyance, "No, not ball, you idiotic woman, globe: as in the Earth. That demon sucks Earth into hell."

"Oh, right, yeah . . ." Buffy replied perkily, and then frowned, "That's not good."

"Duh," Cordelia said, rolling her eyes.

"Hey, Quiet, I'm not done yet!" Buffy called out, silencing her friends. "All right, let's see, where was I, oh yeah. The demon was stopped by a holy knight, who plunged his blessed sword into its chest, upon which demon and sword turned to stone. They then sealed him in a stone box, and hid it in an unknown location."

"Right on top of the Hellmouth apparently," Willow commented with a frown, "Now why would anyone hide something like that in demon central?"

"Exactly because of that reaction," Xander said sagely, making her and several of the others look over at him. "Nobody will suspect somebody would hide it here, so nobody would go looking for it here."

Lotion then enthusiastically finished, "And if someone does find it, they probably weren't looking for it, which means they're probably good people, and either hide it someplace else or get rid of it once and for all."

"Like us," Oz commented calmly from his relaxed position next to his girlfriend.

"Right, which means the question now becomes, how _/do/_ we get rid of it?" Jenny asked the assembled committee.

"Ged reed of whad?"

The Scoobies turned around as one and looked directly at the new arrival. "Kendra!" Buffy was first to exclaim, a smile on her face. She placed the book on the table, and hurried over to the South American Slayer. Buffy hugged her, then broke the hug quickly, and asked sternly, "How did you get here?"

"Bought a teeckeet," she answered and pulled said ticket from her bag as proof. The Slayer was as made up as before, wore a pair of tight jeans, and a green tight t-shirt, over which was a open jeans jacket. Finally she wore a backpack.

"Good," Buffy answered with a smile, nodding, then walked her over to the group. "I think you know all of them- oh, except Oz. Oz, Kendra, Kendra, Oz. She's the second Slayer."

Multiple greets were exchanged between the Scoobies and the happy return. "So why are you here?" Buffy asked her sister Slayer. "Wait. Let me guess. You watcher saw the omens of a dark power rising on the Hellmouth."

"Eendeed," Kendra answered nodding.

"Mr. Zabuto did not contact me," Giles said with a light hint of annoyance.

"Meester Zabuto tought eet prudent, to arrive weetout anyone being able to find out, meening seecrecy even from you," Kendra explained quickly.

"Well, I guess someone is going to try and revive Acathla after all. Wonder who," Xander said, pondering the question.

"Or perhaps the archeologist is going to open the box after all, and wake Acathla without knowing what he's doing?" Willow supplied with a little dread, looking over to Giles.

"I doubt that, but I can give him a call he most certainly shouldn't open it," Giles said, and promptly went to do that.

"What ees dees Acathla?" Kendra asked softly as Giles made the phone call.

Buffy picked up the book and handed it over, confident that Kendra was much better at Latin than she was. Kendra read through it, with everyone watching her in anticipation, and then looked up with a frown just as Giles finished the phone call. "Dees does not sound right. When was eet found?" Kendra asked.

"A few days ago," Jenny supplied the Latin Slayer.

Kendra looked at Jenny and announced, "Dat ees wrong. Thee great demon dat me Watcher found out about, has been beesy accumulating power for several weeks now. Thee demon has been preparing a reetual. Thee omens and prophecy talk about 'ee small power riseeng too greadness', dat ees not dees Acathla."

"Oh, great," Cordelia commented sourly, "as if one Armageddon level demon isn't enough, now there are two of them. When will it end?"

"When Armageddon succeeds, or they are all dead," Oz observed coolly, making Cordelia, Willow, and Xander look at him. He just shrugged.

"May I be so bold to assume that that sentence is not the only thing you brought?" Giles prompted the South American Slayer.

"Eet ees not," Kendra answered and pulled her backpack off her back. She opened it, and pulled out a stack of books.

"Oh, joy, more reading," Cordelia observed sarcastically, while Willow beamed at the prospect.

"Wait a minute," Xander said, somewhat pissed. "Are you telling us, some dick demon has actually been doing this under our noses, and apparently kept all his minions in check not doing anything, to make it appear all is quiet?"

"It seems that way," Jenny said, with a expectation of a retort.

"Oh, my god," Xander said with wide eyes, perhaps even fear. That shocked most who knew him; Xander may have made jokes about being afraid, but even then he never really seemed afraid, and after his lovely vacation in China, he'd never seemed afraid at all - more like the opposite. "This is not good. Spike wasn't exactly stupid, but if this guy did that . . . well, Spike was smart, this guy would be brilliant. He'd be a strategic master mind. This is not good, seriously not good."

-----

They were researching, Buffy and Kendra setting next to each other. Buffy had been talking with the girl; someone who hadn't been here when she had to dust Angel, her subsequent screw up with the love spell, and her possession gave her a good distraction. Kendra in the mean time, while talking with Buffy and researching was building up the courage to ask _/the/_ question. Finally she had built up enough, and asked, "Buffy, I do not see Angel? Are you ant eem steell . . .?"

Kendra trailed off well planned, but would have done so if she hadn't, because a pained look came over Buffy. "I . . . he . . ." Buffy said softly, pausing to look down. Then she looked up and whispered all but choking up, "He lost his soul, and I had to dust him."

"I am sorry," Kendra answered her softly.

"Don't be; I would have broken up with him instead, corpse and Slayer don't mix," Buffy said, waving Kendra's compassion away.

"Eet must steell 'urt," Kendra whispered, and Buffy nodded.

"Oh, bollocks," Giles all but exclaimed.

Everyone looked up with dreading looks. Various books in front of all of them - except Willow and Jenny who gently chanting in a pentagram. "If I combine these two, and I have my calculations right, then the rising to power will happen tonight," Giles said in explanation.

"You were expecting anything less difficult?" Buffy asked him cynically.

The flames of the candles on the pentagram star's points burned a little brighter, and then went down again. Willow slumped a bit, and Jenny turned her head to Giles and the others. "He's put up a lot of wards to keep us from detecting his magic. We found his location though: the church."

"_/The/_ church?" Buffy asked stricken; she still had nightmares about Angel almost dying there, only hardly ever as other nightmares had taken their place - although sometimes those blended with the first.

"Didn't we burn it down?" Lotion asked annoyed.

"I hate dat place," Kendra muttered with a frown, "lost me favoreet shirt dere."

"Apparently we didn't burn it down enough," Jenny observed with a growl.

Buffy sighed, and said, "You never do, and if you do, somebody else rebuilds it." They looked at her, and she said with a blush, "I've done some gym burning in my time."

They nodded remembering. "Hey, look at the bright side, Buff," Xander said with a big grin, making Buffy frown.

"Fire is bright?" Buffy guessed.

"Ripping shirts of hot babes," Xander said with a big grin.

"XANDER!" several female shrieks sounded, and some implements were thrown his way, which he laughingly attempted to deflect with raised arms.

"I concur," Oz said.

"Oz, you perverted male!" Cordelia growled at him, giving him a light slap on his arm, but smiled surreptitiously at the dirty comment nonetheless.

Oz looked at Cordelia, and told her, "I've heard better from you." Kendra snickered then, joined one by one by the other girls.

Xander just chuckled. "Jokes aside, let's get weapons and go find him now, before this fellow gets to implement his plans," Giles said, as he visible put the strength-boosting ring on, and then they were off.

-----

A short while later, the whole group arrived at the church. They cautiously entered through the front door, checking for traps but finding none. When they entered the main hall from between some machinery, Buffy couldn't help but look over where Angel had hung. Along with the others she went silent, slightly widening her eyes at what she saw. There, at the other half of the church, whoever was the big bad, had done some redecorating. Candles lit the place, making it look yellow-hued. Most of the fire damage had been cleaned up. Upside down crosses, ankhs, and pentagrams adorned the walls surrounding the focal point: the altar, in front of which were two very big pentagrams. They were on the floor; candles at the star ends, just like Jenny and Willow had earlier, only bigger, two of them, and apparently drawn in blood. Some fifteen vampires were close by the altar. All but a few of the benches were gone; either pieces of them lying burned on the ground, or removed by the vampires.

"Well, look at that." The vampire's voice dripped with glee and sarcasm. He wore glasses and stepped forward from the other fourteen. He was vamped out, and apparently the leader. "So, you found us, one of mine disobeyed orders perhaps?" he said with an evil grin, eyes glittering yellow.

"Prophecy and omens," Buffy told him, as they all took the whole place in.

"Really?" Dalton said with a grin, "I'm important enough for prophecy _/and/_ omens, I'm flattered."

"You die!" Lotion yelled, and she, Xander, and the two Slayers charged forward.

"No, hold i-!" Willow cried out, but stopped as she was too late. About three quarters of the way of the church hall, a deep purple energy wall with oily colors within shimmered as the four of them slammed into it, and then dropped back on their asses. "There's a shield," Willow finished weakly, as the four looked from their down position with dismay at the vampire.

"Bloody hell," Giles muttered.

"Fuck! This is bad," Cordelia cursed, while Jenny just looked astonished, and the four downed warriors slowly got up.

All the vampires chuckled, including Dalton who took a few steps forward. "Nice of you to find me, but as you noticed, you're rather a little too late," Dalton said, tapping the invisible shield with his right index finger, causing it to ripple into visibility. "This won't come down, until after we've ascended."

"_/We/_?" Xander asked with disgust.

"Two pentagrams, two vampires, me, and my friend Marius over there," Dalton spoke with a big grin. He had already won. "There's no way in, shield surrounds us completely, including the bottom and the ceiling."

"Ant you are?" Kendra asked the vampire with a grimace.

"Oh, the prophecy didn't name me, huh? Name's Dalton, don't forget that name, I'll rule this world soon," Dalton told the dark Slayer with a smile. "Now if you would excuse me, however much I like this conversation, I'm somewhat busy." He then turned around, and went to one of the pentagrams, pulling out a book that he started reading in.

For a moment the Scoobs looked in frustration, then the warriors turned around and looked at Willow and Jenny. They joined and did a quick examination spell, then Jenny said, "Sorry, far too powerful for us to breach."

"RAH!" Buffy growled, turned abruptly and started walking the way they came. "Lotion, you get your mother, we're going to need her, and she did make a deal with Xander about that. The rest of us, we gotta get to the library and find a way to beat them . . ."

Everyone stayed put for just a moment, then followed the blonde out.

-----

"This is really bad," Buffy said as they entered the library. They had all been silent on the way back, thinking over their predicament.

"Duh," Cordelia said depressed.

"Can we do anything? Could the rocket launcher work?" Willow asked hopefully.

Xander shook his head, "No, he was one of Spike's minions. He knows about the launcher, he's gotten a shield that we can't penetrate."

Jenny sighed, and added, "Which would also mean, that whatever he's doing, will make him too powerful for the rocket launcher. He won't go through all this trouble just be blown to bits like the judge."

They reached the table, and Giles leaned heavily on it. "So basically, we're screwed," Cordelia summed the situation up quite nicely.

"He did make one mistake," Giles observed thoughtfully, and they all looked hopefully at him. Giles looked up, and explained, "Noticed when he touched the shield? It's two-way, that means it protects us from him as much as it protects him from us. He'll have to lower it before he can hit us; he can't just kill us safely from behind his shield."

"Wheech means that when ee lowers eet, we can hurt eem," Kendra summed up the little glimmer of hope.

Buffy felt the need to point out defeatedly, "Of course, he won't lower it until he's pretty much invulnerable anyway."

"So basically, we're screwed," Cordelia repeated with some annoyance; why did they always have to try and be smarter than her?

"This isn't fair!" Buffy exclaimed with wide eyes. "Where's the laser canon? Where's the super spell? Where's the damn magic anti-demon weapon? We're the good guys, aren't we supposed to get some weapon dumped in our laps so we can defeat this thing?"

"Unfortunately, this isn't a Hollywood production," Willow said sadly, while Xander perked up.

He blinked, and then slowly walked around his friends toward one still opened book. "Actually," he started with a slight grin rapidly growing, "we _/do/_ have a magic, holy, anti-demon weapon. You're a genius, Buffy!" He placed his hands on the table around the open book.

"I am?" Buffy asked and looked over to him, as did the others. Then they looked down at the book, reading which it was.

Giles was the first to realize what Xander had in mind. "**-Are you off your bloody rocker?-"** he exclaimed. Everyone looked over to him, and he quickly schooled himself, then continued, "If you take that sword, Acathla will wake up, and suck the world into hell itself. It'll be worse than suffering from Dalton's rule!"

"Then we'll just have to destroy him before he does that, won't we?" Xander said with a steadily growing grin: growing more cocky.

"And how are you going to do that?" Giles asked him annoyed.

Xander's grin grew to split his face, and he said, "Giles, seriously, step into the first century. Or should I say _/boom/_?" Everyone looked at him expectantly, as if he was mad, or both. He clarified, "Remember I said I took a few choice extras from the military base: a little C4 should do the trick."

"Why don't we just use this stuff on the big bad Dalton then?" Buffy asked a little confused.

Willow answered the blonde sagely, "Same reason the rocket launcher won't work."

Xander added, half correcting, "More so, Dalton is mobile, and you don't throw those explosives. Acathla is nicely a rock statue."

"Real nice plan, dork, but you're forgetting one thing," Cordelia said superiorly, "For all its holiness, it's still a normal old steel sword. Might be able to kill demons, but you'd have hurt the demon first; and somehow I don't see a demon that can survive rockets be much impressed with a steel blade."

"We can help with that," Jenny said with a hopeful smile, "I have to get a spell book from home, but I know there's a spell that can enchant a sword and make it far more sharp and unnaturally tough. It should allow it to penetrate almost anything."

"Go," Buffy said. Jenny nodded and was off to get the spell book.

"That leaves just one thing," Oz butted in, ever the head of calmness, "we need a way to get that sword out."

Everyone but Giles nodded, and prepared to get books. Giles observed, "This is utterly insane, waking up a demon that can destroy the world to vanquish another one."

"The riskier the road, the greater the profit," Xander said with a big grin. "I'm getting the C4 . . . and the rocket launcher; might keep 'em busy. Hey, Buff, you get to fire the rocket launcher after all."

"But I don't get to blow anything up with it," Buffy said with a her 'unfair' pout and tone. Xander grinned and was off.

Giles sighed. Shaking his head, he muttered, "I'm doomed."

-----

"Found it," Oz announced. Lotion and Deo had arrived half an hour earlier. Jenny had returned a few minutes after that, and she and Willow were now practicing and memorizing the enchantment spell. Xander had returned with the equipment not soon after.

"This one doesn't require you to be pure evil and have killed enough people to fill several stadiums?" Willow asked as they all came over to look.

"Nope, no mention of it, just that no one evil can use this," he explained quickly.

"Good, can you do this, Oz?" Xander asked the werewolf. Oz raised his eyebrows as if to say, 'Are you kidding?' and nodded. Xander nodded, and said, "Then you and I are going to get our magic sword, the rest of you confront Dalton."

"Uh, shouldn't we wait till you got it?" Cordelia asked a little perturbed.

"No time," Xander said with some annoyance, but not at Cordelia, at the situation, "we don't know when he'll be finished, if he's ready before I get there, you have to keep them busy and in that place; cramped quarters, possibly not fully charged just after whatever they're doing, and known battlefield might be the only advantages we've got, and we have to use 'em. We have to fight Dalton there, and nowhere else."

"Great, no we're cannon fodder," Cordelia said depressed.

"Happy to, Future Husband," Lotion said with a slight bow, making Cordelia roll her eyes.

-----

"You are . . .?" Doug Perrin asked from behind the door.

"We are; you got Giles' call?" Xander stated business like withing Sunnydale University.

"Yes, okay, come in, I don't quite get- . . ." Doug started.

"You'll see," Xander cut him off, as he and Oz, wheeling a moving cart, walked into the lab. They walked straight to the box, Xander pulling his small battle axe from his back.

"Hey!" Doug said, but before he could do or say anything else, Xander slammed his axe hard into the groove. The horrifying sound of splintering rock followed - at least it was horrifying to the archeologist.

Xander and Oz grabbed the door and with straining Hyena-chi-enhanced, and werewolf-enhanced muscles forced open the door. Inside was the petrified demon; all stone, tusks, and a sword stuck in his left chest. "That's a strange piece," Doug said enthusiastically at the interesting archeological find, a new art work, almost forgetting about the unsafe way it was freed. Without saying a thing, Xander and Oz stepped half into the box and grabbed the statue on either end. With a little strain, they picked it up. "What are you doing?" Doug asked with a frown that came a third from confusion, a third from concern, and a third from annoyance at the amateurish handling.

The super strong humans moved the demon over to the cart, and placed him on it. "Let's move it," Xander said with haste, and grabbed the handle, while Oz moved to the back to hold the statue, keeping it from falling off.

"Hey, you can't do that!" Doug said concerned now, instinctively hurrying after them.

"Yes, we can, didn't Giles say so?" Xander asked, as Oz kept his characteristic silence.

Doug shook his head, and said, "No, yes, no . . . he said to let you do whatever you need to do, wheeling it away isn't part of what I thought he meant. It's the universities property, there are archeological guiding principles, and . . . Hey!"

Xander and Oz sped up, continuing to wheel the demon through the night-silent school. "Don't worry, we know what we're doing. It's all safe." Oz actually raised an eyebrow at that statement - blowing up a statue, safe? He thought not.

"But- . . . protocol . . . uh," Doug tried, but the two boys already reached the exit, and with a little maneuvering and lifting the demon was over the threshold of the small side entrance. Then they went onward, out on the middle ground, quickly going for the middle. The moment they were done, Xander reached in his jacket and presented three bars of C4. Doug frowned as he watched Xander place the things on the statue. "That looks like . . ." he muttered, and then his eyes widened. "Those are! You can't do that!" he exclaimed in shock.

"**-Quiet! This is delicate stuff,-"** Xander ordered with authority, finishing with the last bar. "Oz, do your magic."

The command silence the man for a moment, watching stunned as Oz presented a book, and a jar with some powder. Oz tossed it on the statue, the sword of it, and chanted in Latin. Doug's eyes widened more at the crazy event, mustering up the need to speak. Oz finished though, and said, "Do the honors, Xander."

Xander nodded, and grabbed sword's short handle. There was a whoosh, and white-blue lite flashing around the sword, which stunned Doug fully. More so when the stone sword suddenly turned metallic, and was then smoothly pulled free, with equally smooth sound. There was crackling, like stones tumbling down a mountain, and with Doug frozen in position, the statues eyes opened. Yellow eyes took in the world, looking around, even as bit by bit the head came to life, and onward the rest of the statue. The teeth turned white, while the skin stayed grey, but now a clear alive grey skin. The demon opened his mouth, as its eyes settled on Xander, then a blue vortex started to form, then expand, even as the tumbling stone sounds continued and the rest of the demon - still frozen - steadily started to come back.

Somehow the demon could speak, even while opening the slowly expanding vortex. The grumbling voice, as if made of rock, said, "A human? You would plunge your own world into hell?"

Xander grinned, leaning closer, and said, "Nah. If you're born in the last two millennia, you'll understand the concept 'boom'." The demon frowned, and Xander pointed at one of the C4 bars at Acathla's neck. Behind Xander, Oz took the shocked Doug, and pulled him along to find distance and cover. Mostly still petrified, the demon's eyes shot downward with dread, seeing the bar. "Toodles," Xander said, turned, and ran off, his new prize in hand. After several steps, he pulled out a box from his jacket. He pushed a button on it just as he jumped high and far, onto the University's roof.

With a mighty explosion Acathla was blown to bit, pebbles of stone raining around, several slamming through a few windows with loud crashes. Xander, Oz, and Doug had to raise their arms for protection. Of the demon's flesh, nothing was left. The moment the demon was no more, the vortex - now about a meter in diameter - started to shrink, before collapsing in on itself and disappearing.

Xander jumped back down, and gave Oz a look that said, 'Let's go.' Oz nodded and the two started to leave, leaving a shocked, frozen Doug. "Welcome to the real world," Oz gave the man a last greet, before they disappeared into the night.

-----

They entered the church, weapons drawn, and looked at the spectacle before them. "Ah, shit," Cordelia said, looking at Dalton and Marius standing in the pentagrams. They were chanting while Dalton's minions were performing parts of the ceremony. A red pulsing light was circling both of them; and their eyes were glowing red, they were progressing rapidly. "We're so screwed," Cordelia added, greatly annoyed, as Willow and Jenny had gone over to a secluded corner, where they drew a pentagram and prepared several ingredients and candles. Buffy loaded her rocket launcher with one of the three rockets.

When they were done they returned to the middle, and Willow said nervously, looking over at Jenny, "W-well, let's see if Xander's right, and this makes them jittery." Jenny nodded.

Kendra added, "Ant dat being jeettery will cause dem to make meestakes." The others nodded, Giles rechecking if his ring was where it should be: on his finger making him stronger.

Willow and Jenny held hands; Willow on Jenny's left side with her right hand, and Jenny vice versa. They chanted, bringing their free hands together, pointing at the ceremony. Then a beam of energy erupted from their hands, and slammed into the shield - without any noticeable effects, apart from making the shield visible as before. "Anything?" Deo asked coolly. From the strain on Willow and Jenny it was an obvious 'no'.

Some of the minions paused, looking at the event. Dalton paused his chanting for but a moment, not losing his cool at all, just to tell his minions, "Continue." They obeyed, and went onward.

After a little bit, the two witches stopped and looked at each other. The flames on the candles around the two vampires grew, and the blood pentagrams started to glow. The energy circling them grew more intense, and started to circle faster. Then they suddenly shrunk, disappearing into the vampires. Dalton and Marius shuddered as the energy entered them. Their eyes snapped open and started to glow an unholy red. The church started to tremble with the power, and the Scoobies looked around and up, hoping the church wouldn't collapse. Luckily the fire had already destroyed the roof, so they didn't have to worry about any cave in. The candles started burning even brighter, and then shrunk to the floor as the large flamed consumed the fuel in no time at all. As the flames hit the glowing blood pentagram, it erupted into flame: the circle first, and then moving inward to the vampires. Finally the hellish fired the trembling fires, consumed them, and then disappeared into them.

The fire simple stopped, growing smaller then disappearing, after which the glowing dimmed leaving only the blood pentagrams. The vampires stood trembling and groaning, and then they started growing . . . and growing. Their limbs thickening, filling with steel muscles. The legs covered with fur, the pants ripped, as did the shoes when cloven feet burst forth from them. The upper clothes equally ripped apart as the arms grew to the size of tree trunks. The chests seemed to be made skin as solid as rock; the fangs grew along with the head. The head stayed the basic vampire head - except for the size and eyes turning blood-red instead of yellow. Dalton's glasses were torn apart and dropped to the floor. Finally they stopped growing at about three meters tall.

"Oh, shit," Buffy muttered in shock at giant vampires - the fur covering the legs and crotch the only thing that kept their packages from sight - one thing she was eternally grateful for.

"Meet, the _/real/_ vampire," Dalton said with a perpetual grumble, "the thing that mixed his blood with humans." He slammed his heads on his chest once, and grinned. "Now for my minions," Dalton said, and simply pointed his hands at each vampire one by one. Almost immediately they started to convulse and change; their eyes falling further into their heads; and their fangs growing narrower but longer, while a second fang joined the first right next to it. Their claws and hands grew, while their skin turned paler - even the one black-skinned vampires had pale dirty-white skin at the end.

"Oh, yeah," one minion growl and then howled at the sky with glee.

"Oh, sheet," Kendra muttered, mimicking Buffy.

"Turok-Han, extinct super vampires, bollocks," Giles said in shock at the transformed minions.

"Get ready, Buffy," Jenny said, keeping her head cool. Buffy nodded and mounted the launcher on her shoulder.

"Now it's time for you to die," Dalton said with hate, and licked his lips in anticipation. He pointed his hands, the shield became visible for a moment, and then disappeared.

Buffy immediately launched the first rocked. Dalton pointed his right hand, and two meters in front of him, the rocket stopped. It hung in mid air for a moment, making Dalton smile, and then exploded harmlessly. "I am a god, you're little toys can't hurt me," Dalton said with a grin.

"Shoot the minions, Buffy," Willow said quickly, as the vampires started to advance. Buffy nodded as she already was busy mounting the next rocket. Soon after, with the Scoobs in defensive positions she fired another rocket, directly hitting an advancing Turok-Han. The vampire was ripped to shreds, and a second was set ablaze. Cordelia leaped forward and slashed her swords down at a Turok-Han, but it easily caught her by the wrists. She kicked it in its stomach, moving it off of her, as the others started to go into action. Buffy fired another rocket, but this one was stopped by Marius before it could hit another minion, then exploded.

"Shit," Buffy cursed and pulled her stake. Next to her Kendra slammed her elbow in one of the Turok-Han staggering it just a little. Buffy herself smashed her fist with all her might into a Turok-Han making it fly back.

Cordelia managed to decapitate one, turning it to dust, and she said angrily, "Just like any other vampire." Then she was assaulted by another one.

Lotion tossed one against another, as Deo smoothly decapitated one. Willow and Jenny drew together as the others fought the super strong minion vampires. The witches each pointed a hand at one of the monster pure vampires, and said together, "Ignis." Flames erupted immediately, consuming both of them. With two mighty roars red energy blasted out from them and the flames instantly smothered.

"Was that the best you've got?" Dalton asked sincerely, and then pointed his right hand at them. "It's time for you to die," he grumbled as a red ball of energy formed.

"Oh, damn," Willow said, and they both jumped to either side as the ball was flung at them. It slammed into the ground where they had been a moment earlier and exploded with enough force to send the two hurtling away, even if they were already away but still in the air, leaving a good hole. They slammed painfully on the ground and rolled onward, and did the same with two of Dalton's minions and Kendra.

Buffy ducked underneath swing and slammed her stake home; only for it to stop at something solid with an audible crunch. Buffy's eyes widened and pulled the stake back, showing the point to be splintered and torn. "Fuck," she said, as the vampire chuckled. It grabbed her by her neck, and moved its fangs forward. Buffy quickly got her short axe from behind her back and gutted the formally extinct vampire. It freed her from its grip, but the pain served to only make it more angry. It roared; but then her axe struck its neck; the head came flying off and it turned to dust.

Giles smashed his right foot in a Turok-Han's got with the brute force the ring gave him, and it doubled over with pain and surprise. He then decapitated it with his sword, and moved forward to Dalton. Next to him a vampire about to hurt Kendra erupted in flames and turned to dust. With a quick motion Giles stabbed his sword at Dalton's gut with all his might . . . where it barely penetrated an inch. The stopping of the sword, made Giles had shoot froward and slam painfully against the guard. "Insect," Dalton grumbled and slammed his right hand in a backhanded manner. As the sword clang to the floor, Giles screamed in pain, hearing his own ribs break. He was launched backward, up and over the combatants, tumbling along, until he slammed with his back against the church wall. Once again he yelled in pain, feeling more bones break, and coughing up blood.

"GILES!" Buffy said in anger, and Kendra yelled an angry yell as well. Buffy killed her attacker rapidly, as did Kendra and they progressed toward Dalton together. A last few Turok-Han were burned to the ground, as Deo killed the last of her attackers and quickly rushed over to Giles. Giles was groaning in extreme pain.

As Deo gave him a cursory examination, she said, "I thought that ring gave you great strength?"

"It does," Giles croaked out, giving a yell of pain, which was blinding. He wheezing for air with difficulty, and added, "Just not . . . engh . . . less . . . vulnera- . . . ah, it seems!" Deo nodded, placed her hands on his chest, and rendered him unconscious with a pulse of chi. She picked him up, and quickly went to move him off of the battle field while the battle raged behind her.

"BASTARD!" Buffy screamed with blind rage, hacking uselessly into Dalton, while Marius was assaulted by Willow with small magic, explosive balls, which apart from making him wince and jerk just a bit didn't seem to do anything. "I will kill you!" Buffy raged, as Kendra join her, slashing at Dalton's furry legs with her sword. Dalton was growing annoyed, as he deflected blows: only those aiming for his crotch, they might not be able to cut him there, but it could still hurt like hell.

"Oh, really?" he asked, and then took a deep breath. Instinctively, and smartly, the Slayers looked up, and then Dalton blew out down toward them. Instead of air, it was a stream of hellfire that came flying at them. They jumped, aside quickly. Buffy's left side got singed, but Kendra almost took the full flame. She screamed as she was on fire; almost instantly the fire consumed her clothes, licking hungrily at her skin. One part of her face was already visibly black. As taught, she immediately started to roll to smother the flames. Dalton growled angrily and pointed his hand at her, firing another bold of red energy. Just as Kendra would be ripped to pieces in the explosion, Cordelia slammed into her, and jumped onward. The ball missed, but still had enough explosive power to send the both of them tumbling onward, screaming in pain as the energy singed them, debris pelted them, and ripped their flesh, causing several bloody wounds. They immediately started their efforts to get up, but were moaning in pain all the way.

Lotion had joined the assault on Marius. She had decided to forego the sword and her punches indeed did more damage that the sword. It allowed her too slam her fists with all her might; along with Willow's and now Jenny's magical explosive blasts, they actually seemed to make some progress on the monstrously large vampire - when in reality they only succeeded in slowing him down. Lotion danced and wove around Marius' wild slams. "Stand still," he grumbled, slamming his fist on the ground, making it burst, giving Lotion the opportunity to kick his arm.

Buffy got up with difficulty, seeing that three of them were already out. With tears of rage and pain in her eyes, she charged Dalton again. The vampire's right hand suddenly snuck out and grabbed her around her waist. She was shocked as the hand, almost as tall as her torso, lifted her easily off the ground in a painful, vicelike grip. The claw on its thumb then penetrated Buffy's right side, making her scream in pain, feeling the warm liquid of her blood rapidly being sucked in her top, and trickle down to her pants. "I think I'm going to eat you, whole," Dalton told Buffy.

Deo had just returned, and observed the battle - more like the blood bath, or it soon would be. Quickly identifying where she was need most, she raced over to Dalton, jumped, and slammed a devastating kick into his right wrist. "Damn it!" he roared with the suddenly painful jolt, and let go of Buffy, who slammed painfully to the ground. Grabbing her gushing wound she scrambled away, looking astonished at Deo.

The Amazon warrioress finally showed her true power. A devastating punch to Dalton's gut actually made stagger back, and jerk his torso forward a little. The followup uppercut made Dalton stagger more. Then suddenly Deo blurred, split up, and a moment later a whole lot of Deo's were running around the demon, kicking and beating him from all sides. One to the ribs, to the back. "What?" Dalton said in surprise noticing the multiple Deo's. "Raargh!" he roared and reached . . . straight through non-existent illusion Deo's, and he looked with wide eyes as kick after kick and punch after punch slammed into him. One sharp kick to the back of his knee brought him down to it. With the speed of the chestnuts, Deo drew her sword, charged it with her chi, and with a single devastatingly fast slice, cut open Dalton's throat. Deo paused for a moment, the illusions still running around, and looked surprised as the head was still attached; that thing's hide and bone was immeasurably tough. Dalton gurgled, and then wound started closing right in front of everyone's eyes.

"Damn it," Doe muttered in her own language, then ran again, starting to hit Dalton again.

"That's it!" Dalton spoke with finality, and with a roar charged an energy ball at both his hands, immediately firing them straight down. There was a mighty explosion that barely hurt him, but since it enveloped him on all sides it caught Deo full and she was launched away to the back of him, groaning in pain tell she slammed against the wall.

"Exactly," Marius rumbled, and produced the same tactic, shredding part of Lotion's clothing, and ripping open her left leg, before slamming into a wall. "This ends now," he said, and stepped forward resolutely. Willow was surprised at the speed, and moved too slow. A moment later the super vampire's hand was wrapped around her torso and neck, and yanked her off the floor. "You die, witch," he said angrily.

Willow looked up at him with fear and pain as he started to squeeze the life from her. Then suddenly from her right came a small package, which jumped up and grabbed ahold of the arm that was holding her. His teeth than bit down into the demon's flesh with all his might. Willow recognized Oz, just as Marius roared with annoyance and a little pain. He let go off Willow and tossed Oz away with a yank. He slammed painfully against the wall and groaned, "Willow, Jenny."

The two witches ran to their prepared ritual sight, while looking around. The saw Xander at the far end on the second floor, holding the sword up. He looked grim, and full of righteous anger as he surveyed the scene in front of him. They reached the ritual sight, quickly calmed themselves, and knowing they couldn't move until they were finished, being inviting targets, chanted, "Cha di, martok la, castageer, dirma, sword Acathla, korcha moran!" The ingredients went up in flames, and blue sparkles appeared around their hands, while at same time around the sword. Then they ran; a moment later an energy ball coming from Dalton slammed into the wall, exploded, and sent them flying while being battered up by the pieces of wall that were launched from the destruction.

Xander watched as the blue sparkles fluttered around the sword, then felt as if it came alive, the whole blade turned to the same deep, ethereal blue color; a sword of energy. Hissing in anger, he jumped forward, "May the force be with me. FUCK YOU!"

He slashed the sword down, but Marius just jumped aside, and slammed his fist against him. Xander landed painfully against the wall, but jumped up right away. He ducked beneath the next fist as Dalton advanced on the fight. Xander hit the demon in the knee, making it stagger back. With a angry roar he charged. Feinting to the left, he went to the right. Marius saw through it, and grabbed him with his left arm, grinning. A moment later he screamed and let go. Xander had managed to raise his arms before capture, and had now sliced the energy sword across the offending arm. It went through with ease, opening a deep, large gash. Raging, Marius brought his right hand forward and fired an energy ball. Xander had jumped up just before. Now at the height of Marius' head, he missed the blast, and then he slashed downward with a snarl and all his might. The blade, crackling with energy, sliced through the demon once again like a hot knife through butter. It split Marius head in two, then went through his neck, all the way down through his heart to reach the middle of the chest.

Xander pulled the sword out, and looked at vampire that finished screaming of horrifying pain. "They heal," Buffy managed to croak in warning from her position on the ground, cradling her wound. Instead though, the cut began to glow with red energy, starting at his heart. Xander frowned, and the almost healed cut on the demon's arm started to glow as well.

"Oh, shit! Cover!" Xander yelled as he realized what was happening. He turned and ran, but then Marius exploded with a mighty explosion, red fire and shockwaves blasting out from him, pieces of his body showering everywhere. They, however, did not come even a meter before they turned to dust, and the vampire was no more. The blast had caught Xander and a few others though, and they were tossed about like they were nothing. Making sure to not lose the sword, Xander found himself painfully slamming against the far wall.

"You bastard!" Dalton roared and walked over to Xander rapidly, his hooves sounding ominously on the marble church floor. Xander righted himself, and looked up, eyes widening at the massive vampire demon. Rapidly Dalton slammed his left foot onto Xander's right wrist, and the yelled with the pain. He tried to move it, but Dalton's strength and weight was too much; his wrist, and this the sword was pinned. "He was my friend, you will _/die/_ for that," Dalton hissed, reaching down. He grabbed Xander by his collar and opened his mouth to bite. At the same time, with all his strength, Xander shoved the sword away, sliding noisily across the floor. Dalton paused, looking back to Xander's hand. His eyes widened and turned half around.

Buffy, in mid run, picked the sword, grimacing and groaning at the pain coming from her still bleeding wound. She jumped up and twisted around in mid air rapidly, grimacing and making a loud painful sound at the back of her throat at the sharp pain from doing that. Dalton's eyes widened, and tried to do something, but was too late. A moment later the energy sword sliced cleanly through his neck, and his head flew off - a fountain of blood erupting from his large neck.

Buffy landed, groaning and grabbing her wound. The head bounced on the floor, and the neck wound on both sides started to glow. "Xan!" she yelled coming forward as he got up. She grabbed him, supported him, while he did the same for her, and the stumbled away as fast as they could. A moment later Dalton's body and head exploded mightily, sending Xander and Buffy hurtling forward and rolling painfully across the hard floor. Like with Marius, anything of the body that survived the explosion, turned to dust immediately after.

Xander and Buffy rolled to look at the destroyed vampire. They slowly got up, while the remaining conscious fighters surveyed the scene. They did the same, noticing the fine sheet of dust everywhere. Just as they wanted to give a sigh of relief, the sword started to hum and vibrate uncomfortably in Buffy's hand. She lifted it up, gave Xander a questioning look, and then her eyes widened. "Hit the deck!" she called and threw the sword high upward, passed where once was a ceiling and roof. High in the night sky, the sword suddenly exploded in a blue explosion.

"Ah!" Xander exclaimed as pieces of sword-metal audibly slammed into the ground. He reached for his right shoulder where one of the pieces had imbedded. Buffy jerked her head over, hands still covering it. When she saw he was fine she carefully looked around. It was over it seemed, and finally sighed in relief.

Deo and Lotion rose with groans as did the witches and Oz. After a moment of checking if everything was still attached to themselves, they rushed to their downed compatriots. "We need to call 911, you're watcher is the worst off," Deo said.

-----

Xander hadn't lasted long in the hospital . . . so now Lexa, Willow, Lotion, and Buffy on doing their rounds found themselves with Cordelia. "You okay, Cordelia?" Lexa asked concerned. Buffy was bandaged up underneath her clothes; but due to her Slayer healing she'd be fine in no time.

"Apart from the lovely new scars, I'm fine," Cordelia remarked sarcastically. "If I didn't already have a boyfriend, that will stay with me forever, marry me one day, and loves me fully, I'd be worried."

Buffy leaned over toward Lexa and Willow beyond her, whispering, "Good thing Oz isn't here to hear that; he'd be to half-way to the next state within the hour." Buffy and Lexa chuckled.

"What?" Cordelia asked, interrupting her newest diatribe.

"Nothing," Willow said with the face of an angel. "Go on." As they listened to Cordelia, they went over the casualty list. Jenny, Lotion and Deo were all but fine. Cordelia would have to stay in the hospital several days, but was basically okay. Oz had had a serious bang, but due his werewolf healing he was almost finished healing already. Willow had had several wounds, but would be okay. Kendra had gotten more than her fair share; twenty percent of her body had third degree burns; she was still in surgery and had to undergo several skin grafts from other parts of her body. She had to stay in the body at least a month, the doctors said. They were wrong, Kendra being a Slayer meant she'd be out within a week, and with no visible damage whatsoever. Giles had it worst though, most of his ribs front and back were broke or shattered, and he had multiple internal bleeds. He'd survive though; be stuck in the hospital all through the summer, but he was expected to make an almost full recover. He'd always notice the injuries when he'd be making certain movements, but he'd be able to do just about anything he wanted: as long as it wasn't fighting nasty demons.

And so the Scoobies and managed to defeat the Apocalypse again, but only just barely. Of course, they were unable to defeat Cordy's ranting, and so it was much later that they finally left the cheerleader's side. They sighed in relief that they were gone there. "Say, Willow, did you know the sword was going to explode?" Buffy asked with a frown, seeing the unpleasant possibility of being blown to bits by the sword.

Willow vigorously shook her head, and answered, "No. It wasn't even supposed to turn it into an energy sword. I guess enchanting an already magica, holy sword does some freaky things."

"Well, it worked, that's the important part," Lexa said with positive air.

"It would have been nicer if the weapon didn't almost killed us, though," Buffy replied.

-----

**Mayor's office**

"Ah, Allan, since everything is fine, I take it our intrepid kids have stopped our impolite friend from achieving ascension?" Mayor Wilkins asked with a smile as Allan Finch entered his office.

"Actually, no, sir," Allan Finch answered, scratching his skin nervously. Wilkins looked over at him with an astonished look. "They destroyed them anyway, the ascended forms that is, sir," Finch answered fidgeting.

"Really?" Wilkins said, a dark pensive look crossing his face for a moment. "Ah, well, Allan, you win some, you lose some. Send the chief's winnings to his bank account, will you Allan?"

"Of course, sir," Allan answered and left the office.

-----

**A week later**

"Are you sur, you wanna go?" Buffy asked with an uncertain pout.

"I'll be fine," Kendra said with a smile. "I'll sleep on de plane, and by d time I'm back, all me remaining wounds will be gone. Slayer healing as you well know."

The two Slayers gave each other a hug, and then Buffy left the dark Slayer to her friends. Lexa and Willow hugged the girl quickly and fiercely, having gotten to know her while she recuperated in the hospital, and finding they liked her a lot.

"Come back soon," Willow said with a tear in her eye.

"Yeah, we like you," Lexa said with a sad grin, "find a way to visit, okay?"

"Will do," Kendra said with a smile. Then they broke apart, and waving goodbye, Kendra moved toward the metal detector gate, only to disappear behind it soon after, where only passengers could go.

"You know, all that hugging, almost makes me think I'm not your favorite Slayer anymore," Buffy said with a sad little pout. Her ploy worked, for a moment later she was enveloped in a hug from her two best friends.

-----

**Two weeks later**

Xander was sitting next to Giles in the hospital. He was still recovering, getting slowly incremental physical therapies to rebuild his body. Buffy, Willow, and Cordelia were there was well.

"Xander, you are going," Giles said in a tone that brokered no argument.

Xander stubbornly ignored him, and said, "Giles, you're in the hospital, I'm not going on vacation while you're in the hospital.

"Mr. Harris," Giles spoke formerly and with an even more commanding tone, "I have a girlfriend, an overprotective Slayer, and equally so witch here mothering me all the time." Said witch and Slayer made a disapproving sound, but Giles just continued, "I am not in any mortal danger - that is long past. Trust me when I say, that your presence would only compound my stress, and not give any relief. Further, you have already booked this ages ago; do not throw your money away, and it is not just a vacation. You will be visiting a man you've come to see as your surrogate father, and one of your best friends. So, I will thank you kindly when you're on your way out."

"But . . ."

"No buts," Giles interrupted him.

"But . . ."

"Uh!" Willow warned Xander with a raised finger. When Xander tried again, Willow repeated the gesture. Finally he sank down accepting it, and said, "Okay then, off to Japan it is, as planned."

To Be Continued . . .

Author's notes:

Hmm, such a battle with so many people in such a small enclosed space is pretty difficult to write. Okay then; I hope you guys liked it, next up is Buffy Z episode 82, and the next part of this will start season 2, filled with hilarity: Xander arrives in Nerima, will it survive both him and Ranma? Or not?


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